Unexpected
by Sylar
Summary: What if Sylar escaped? What if Zach remembered? What if Zach was a Hero? What if Claire met another Hero? And what if a whole lot of unexpected things happened? Post Fallout. Clach. Reviews greatly apprieciated! FINISHED!
1. Memories

Claire approached her normal lunch spot at Union Wells High days after Sylar killed Jackie. She kept her eyes on her feet avoiding the stares she received from random people. She could feel their eyes looking right through her and hear their whispers. She tried to avoid letting it get to her. Zach was not there, he was off filming most likely.

A girl younger than Claire watched her. She felt like she knew Claire even though she was sure Claire didn't know she existed. Britt sat towards the top of the stairs as Claire came towards her. She sat near her, but not really close. Claire kept her eyes on her food and didn't look anywhere else, nor did she eat. Britt pulled a sketch pad out and began to sketch random images of a man in a black hat. She saw him staring at the trophy case the night of Homecoming. Britt didn't look popular; she was vice-president of art club and very rocked out, wearing a black My Chemical Romance shirt and torn jeans along with a black hoodie and converse. Someone that Claire would have considered a freak months before.

Claire, who sat alone now, she'd lost all of her friends and it seemed like the cheerleaders blamed her for Jackie's death. She took her eyes off her tray and looked up around her. She saw the cheerleaders all talking silently and then to the football players, with Brody who was still in a wheelchair. Claire looked behind her at a girl who was studying the people below like she saw right through them. There was something about this girl's eyes, they were weird, and she immediately looked away.

Britt's golden eyes scanned the crowd, she had enhanced vision, she saw everything differently. She could look through things, zoom in on things, night vision, and infra-red vision. Claire was right, her eyes were weird. She grabbed her bag and walked down the hall after her last class that day, and walked outside. Zach met her outside and they walked off campus.

"I've been having the weirdest dreams." Zach said, wiping some dirt off his lens.

"Like what?" Britt asked looking at him.

"Claire Bennet's in them, like she's jumping off a water tower and I'm filming it. She got back up and like was fine."

"What?"

"I know its weird, but theres another where we're chasing her brother and we're after

some tape." He paused and looked at her, "It's like we're friends in them"

"You? Friends with Claire Bennett? Yeah." Britt smirked and looked down the sidewalk ahead.

"They're all like that! I was filming her run into a burning train, or I was in her bedroom talking to her. It's all weird."

"Wait. Burning train? You mean the train that Jackie saved the man from?"

"What?"

"You don't remember that?"

"Nope."

"Because… Jackie ran into a burning train car and saved a man."

"Well if that did happen, I dreamt Claire did it."

"Well, I think you're crushing."

"On Claire?"

Britt giggled, "Yeah."

Claire walked down a path towards her house separate from Zach and Britt. She felt so alone, there was no one to talk to on the way home. No more cheerleaders, no more Zach… no one. She came out and into her neighborhood and spotted the two walking ahead. She really wanted to speak to Zach. But that girl was with him so she thought the best of it. She watched Zach stop off at his house and bid goodbye to Britt. Britt walked off toward her house. Claire walked up to her.

"Hey, uhh…?"

Britt turned around shocked to see Claire walking behind her. "Claire?"

"Yeah… I was wondering about Zach… has he… mentioned me?"

_Typical Claire. _Britt thought. _Always about herself._ "Yeah, he has." She replied.

"What has he said."

"He said he wonders what happened to your popularity." She lied.

"Oh." Claire said sadly. "I'm not that person anymore."

"What?"

"Can you keep a secret?" Claire asked, putting total trust on this girl.


	2. Remember

Britt just stared at Claire before saying quietly, "I… guess."

"Zach doesn't remember me at all, the time we hung out or anything." Claire replied. "He doesn't remember much since the sixth grade."

"That's when we were best friends." Britt said, "Sixth grade."

"He just started hanging out with you didn't he?"

"Yeah, it's kind of spontaneous." Britt answered, "He started talking to me like we hung out every day, then we started to hang out. I enjoy the company."

Claire sighed, "Do you remember Jackie's murder?"

"No, I just forgot that huge thing that happened days ago."

"…Well, the man that killed her, wasn't trying to kill her, he was after me, and my dad told me there are people out there, who want to kill me, and they erased Zach's memory." She stopped and waited for Britt to run or call her crazy or something.

"Wow, ok, I'm going into my house now." Britt said as they stopped walking, "It was nice talking with you." And she left.

"Wait, why?" Claire watched her go, "Well that was a bust."

Claire kicked at the sidewalk, and walked off down the sidewalk, she was hoping that this random girl would be able to listen and understand her. After all she is Zach's friend, and if Claire was right, she was more than meets the eye.

She moved towards her house where her dad's car was already parked in the driveway. Claire walked inside and pretended like she had a great day at school and everything was perfect. She was still getting used to not knowing who her dad really was.

"How was your day Claire-bear?"

"Same as always!" She replied with a fake smile.

"That's great." Mr. Bennett smiled back.

Claire shook her head and shuffled up the stairs to her room. She tossed her bag into the corner and looked out her window. She remember Zach climbing through it Homecoming night. She looked at her text messages from filmsbyzach and grinned. How could this have happened? Jackie's dead. Her dad isn't who she thought he was. Zach doesn't remember her. Was her life falling apart?

Meanwhile Zach was going over some of these crazy dreams. He pulled his cell phone out to call Britt when in the memory popped up Claire's number.

"What the hell?" He asked, looking at all her text's. He looked at all the calls his phone made to hers and the messages she left him.

----

"It's weird, I don't remember making these calls or even getting her number." Zach said, while Britt barely listened.

"Sure is." She replied, watching a dog run around a yard as they passed it.

"I mean, the other day she randomly called me to the field and then ran after I asked what was going on, then I find this and--"

"You're talking too much." Britt said flatly. He just looked at her. "Hey, it's Claire."

"Should we ask her what this is all about?" Zach asked, "I bet the cheerleaders are having a nice laugh about it."

"You go right on ahead." She said, now kicking a rock. She stopped as Zach turned around.

"I hope you guys are getting a good laugh from this!" Zach called back towards Claire.

"What are you talking about?" Claire asked as she stopped walking.

"You haven't talked to me since sixth grade and your number is on my phone, you have text's on it and messages? What the hell do you think you'll accomplish?" Zach stopped.

"I'm not pulling any pranks, have you seen me hang out with the rest the past few days? No. So don't accuse me of that. I'm not that person anymore."

Britt watched the two quite amused, _Theres the 'I'm not that person anymore' joke again. _She noted.

"Not that person? So you were just changed like that? Is that it?" Zach asked.

"You changed me Zach. My ability changed me, but ever since they got to you, you forgot, you don't remember any of it. We were friends Zach and you showed me the right way. Then they took you away too."

"Are you high? Taking drugs? We haven't spoken since forever." Zach looked over at Britt who shrugged.

"Why can't you remember?" Claire said out of frustration. "The water tower!"

"Water tower?" Zach asked.

"You filmed me as I jumped off the tower, I got up and I was fine."

"I had a dream about that." Zach admitted.

"Really?"

"That exact thing…. How is that possible?"

"So you believe me?" Claire asked hopeful.

"Not yet." Zach nodded, "I still think you're high."

"You win some, you lose some." Britt said at random and followed Zach as he walked off.


	3. Visitor

Days went by since the conversation between Claire and Zach. Zach stayed clear of Claire at all costs, but she started to hang around Britt, they had a few classes together. Claire felt really close to having Zach back, even though he hadn't come near her in days. Britt seemed to enjoy Claire's company; she had been a loner before all of this. Claire wasn't into cheerleading anymore. She skipped the past two practices and no one really cared. The cheerleaders didn't even ask her why.

Britt was still trying to figure out what Claire had meant by the 'Water Tower.'

"_You filmed me as I jumped off the tower, I got up and I was fine."_

Maybe she was crazy. Then again, Britt was crazy too, so it all worked. Something, though, in the back of her mind told her that Claire was special too. It was mostly from the fact that she had said "My ability."

"So number nine is false then?" Claire asked, jerking Britt back to reality, from staring so long at the wall, she was looking right through it, almost as if it were a window. She shook her head and nodded.

"Yeah, yeah, it's false." She said, fixing her hair.

"This test is going to be harder than I thought." Claire sighed. She looked over to Britt who was still concentrating on Claire's front yard beyond the front wall.

"Zach's here." She said, realizing the mistake she'd made.

"What?" Claire asked, seconds later the doorbell rang. "How'd you do that?" She wondered aloud as she got up to answer the door.

"Someone's after me." Zach said as he entered, he looked panicked, his jacket was ripped and he had an inch long cut on his forehead.

"What's up?" Claire replied, following him into her living room.

"What happened?" Britt asked, standing up.

"Well, I… I was filming after school, it started to get dark so I started to head home. This… this guy…" He trailed off and sat down.

"What guy?"

"This guy attacked me." He panted, "He knocked me off my bike, and then… he grabbed me."

"What did he do?" Britt asked in a hushed voice.

"He slammed me into the side of the brick wall behind here and cut the top of my head with… like… nothing."

"It was him." Claire said, "That's the guy that murdered Jackie."

"How did you get away?" Britt asked, sitting next to him.

"I don't even remember. I remember kicking him and he fell then I ran."

"He could have followed you here." Claire said, turning around. "Wait, why did you come here?"

"Because your house was closest… and because you're crazy… so obviously you'd believe me." He tried to smile but was too shaky.

"This dude must love killing teenagers." Britt commented as she helped Claire lock the doors.

"Not the time." Claire said as she looked out the window. It was growing darker and she wanted her parents to come home, they were at Lyle's game. But at the same time, she didn't want her dad to come, he might erase Zach's memory again. She took her eyes off the front yard and back to Zach.

"Is that everything?" Claire asked as she looked at the three visible doors.

"I think so." Britt replied, she concentrated on the wall some, then it became invisible, she watched the other side and saw a figure emerge from the bushes. "Holy sh—we have company."

"He's here?!" Claire called.

"Unless the mailman typically looks like that, yeah." Britt shouted. Zach stood up and Claire rejoined them.

"We gotta run." She said as they went for the back door.

The shadowy figure in the front yard quickly went around the house. He could tell where they were going to run, if he had planned this right, the X-ray girl would see him, the fire boy would be too freaked and follow them, and the healing girl would lead them to what she would hope to be was safety.

"The power's out." Britt shrieked, after the lights suddenly went out. She could still see through the darkness though. She heard Claire slam into something. Then a window smashed somewhere on the side of the house.

"The door's over here, just keep going." Claire called out. The moonlight was still shining through the back door's window. They got to it and Claire opened it, standing on the other side, was none other than: Sylar.


	4. Guess Who

_Thanks to all who review! I love reading reviews, so please gimme some! Anyway here's chapter four!_

Claire screamed, seeing him again, Zach stumbled back and Britt helped him up. The three of them split up and all ran to a different place. Claire went up the stairs, Zach went into another room and Britt went into another room as well. Sylar thought about who to follow first. Which power would prove most valuable?

He tore up the stairs after Claire and walked silently down the hall. Claire dashed into her room and looked silently around for anything: a hiding place, a weapon… an escape… Claire jumped towards the window and opened it. She could jump… she wouldn't be hurt. Claire had jumped off a water tower for God sakes. She was kicking herself for not following her friends. She approached the door, not hearing any noises from out in the hall.

Maybe this guy had gone after Zach and Britt. If so, Claire needed to get her ass down there. She came out of her room slowly at first, looking both ways. Then suddenly she was grabbed by Sylar. Sylar held her around the neck and threw her against the wall to make an incision. She thrashed around in his grip.

Britt had run towards the family room but ended up in the den. She slowly approached the door and ran across the kitchen. She ducked behind the counter and looked over. Zach tripped over the garbage can and landed by her.

"Where is he?" He hissed, "Where's Claire?"

"Claire." Britt breathed and their head's turned to the staircase.

"What do you want!?" She screamed and tried to push him off, "Brittany?! Zach?!"

Zach got up quickly and dashed towards the stairs. He got up their panting and saw Sylar holding Claire against the wall. He tackled Sylar to the side, into Lyle's room. Sylar kicked him off and got up swiftly.

Britt, who was following Zach, dashed up the stairs even faster, hearing the thumps and noises. She saw Zach grab Sylar around the neck as Claire got up from a hit. Sylar flipped Zach off of him and into Britt, they landed heavily on the bathroom floor. Claire kicked Sylar in the stomach using a cheerleading technique.

Claire punched him under the chin and backed up. Sylar advanced on her with a look of disgust. He went to grab her when she dodged, his hand smashed into the wall. He let out a cry of pain then turned to the three, now standing.

"What do you want from me?" Claire asked, trying to sound brave but succeeding in sounding terrified.

Sylar didn't respond. He held his hand up and pointed at her forehead, a cut snaked its way across. She dropped her knees feeling what he was doing. Zach tackled him around the knees and made his head smash into the wall.

Britt helped Claire up and looked at her forehead as it healed. "What the hell was that?" She asked, staring.

"It's what I've been meaning to tell you guys." Claire replied, she turned around to see Zach hit the wall and slide down, stunned.

Sylar threw Claire into the wall again. Britt grabbed him around the neck causing him to let Claire loose. He threw Britt off with every ounce of strength he could muster, she hit the railing and with the force of the hit broke it. She fell down into a table which smashed.

Zach ran over to the edge and looked down, Britt was out cold. He whirled around to face Sylar. He glared at him and suddenly his coat caught fire. Zach's eyes grew wide. Sylar jumped back and Claire slipped past him and to the edge of the stairs. Sylar slammed himself into the wall and patted the fire out. He winced from a little burn and stepped forward.

"Is she ok?" Zach called to Claire who ran down the stairs to see. Sylar took a swing at him next, causing him to fall, he grabbed onto the bit of wood from the railing that remained. Zach hung there as Sylar stood over him.

"Zach!" Claire shouted as she stood up. "I can't wait to kick your ass." She said through gritted teeth as Sylar swiftly came down the stairs.

"Get her and run!" Zach shouted as Sylar approached them.

"Not without you!" Claire called back as she stood up. Sylar grabbed her by the neck and slammed her into the floor which was littered with glass fragments. They cut into her back but she didn't feel any of it. Zach managed to lift himself back up and ran to find something heavy that he could hit Sylar with.

Sylar made a small incision on Claire's forehead, spraying them both with warm blood. Claire screamed at seeing the thick red liquid run down her face. She looked back for Zach, he was gone, and so was Britt.

_Did they leave me?_ She thought, feeling abandoned, _they can't have…_

Britt took a vase from a table by the sofa and as the cut on Claire's head made it's way around, she smashed it into his head, stunning him. She pulled the shaking Claire to her feet and they made their way to the back door.

"Thanks." Claire panted, he head sealing itself, but the blood was still everywhere.

"You get out there, I'll get Zach." Britt said as they both heard footsteps.

Zach returned, holding a baseball bat that he found in Lyle's room. He ran down the stairs holding it threateningly to Sylar who recovered from the blow, only to receive another. Suddenly the front door burst open. Two men stepped in looking panicked. They turned back to where Sylar was, he was gone.

"Claire? Claire Bennett?" One said with an Asian accent. Zach held the bat in front of him, ready to smash them in the face.

"Do not hurt us, we are…. Friends." The other said with the same accent. The three teens stared at them, still panicked and not willing to trust anyone.

"You know… Peter… Peter Petrelli?" The first asked.

"Peter? You know Peter?" Claire asked stepping forward. Zach put his hand on her shoulder in a protecting way.

"Yes!" He exclaimed, "We are here to save you… you and your friends are in danger. Bad man, kill you, we take you to New York and see Mr. Eesack and Peter Petrelli!"

"My name is Ando, and this is Hiro." The second said, in a less excited voice. "We need to hurry."

"Wait, we have family and friends…" Claire trailed off realizing they didn't have friends… they had each other. She had family… but who was her father? Suddenly she had no objection to leaving.

"What about our families, they'll notice when we're gone." Britt said.

"We'll explain everything in the car." Ando said, "For now, Claire get a new set of clothes. You're covered in blood."

"Ok." Claire said, going up the stairs and into her room.

"How are we going to pull this off?" Zach asked, folding his arms.

"People will think you are dead." Hiro said.

"We're faking our deaths?" Zach asked.

"Oh I am so grounded." Britt said quietly.


	5. Mysterious Happenings

_Thanks for at least one review, I just finished this one up, please review!_

**Highway, Somewhere Near the Texas Border**

The small rental car drove smoothly down a long highway; the three were sleeping in the back seat. The information overload at the hotel had been enough to knock them out. None got any sleep the previous night.

Ando looked in the rear-view mirror at them and grinned.

"How many more hours to New York?" Hiro asked, looking at the sign saying "Texas State Line."

"Many, we're going to need to stay in other hotels before we arrive there." Ando replied.

Claire was the first to wake up. She pushed Zach's head lightly from her shoulder and yawned. She was still confused about how they needed to save Peter and how Isaac painted a picture of her house as it was deemed "Scene of the crime." They were murdered as far as anyone believes.

**Odessa, Claire's house**

Matt Parkman stepped up the front porch steps to Claire's house. There was caution tape surrounding the property. Claire's family was taken to a hotel for now. Audrey met him in the door way.

"It was the same girl." She said, "Claire Bennett."

"So Sylar attacked her again?" Matt asked.

"Yeah, he made a mistake, there were bits of his blood all around the front hall." Audrey replied, as they walked into the living room.

"Looks like she put up a fight." Matt said, looking at the wooden railing sitting on the floor.

"She wasn't the only one." Audrey said, "There were two others here too. Their first names were like… Brittany… and Zachary."

"Do we know where they are?" Matt asked.

"Well Sylar could have them… he could have murdered them." Audrey replied.

"How could he have murdered them, there're no bodies." Matt questioned. "It wouldn't make sense."

"Since when did Sylar murders make sense?" Audrey asked as they walked up the stairs. There was more of Claire's blood there too.

**Highway, Past the Texas Border**

Zach and Britt awoke with a start when Ando swerved the car. They looked around, and blinked in the darkness.

"What happened?" Zach asked shaking his head and looking behind him.

"This van behind us almost hit us." Claire said, watching the black van swerve into the lane next to them.

"American drivers…" They heard Ando mutter. He sped up so he had good distance from it, but the van followed. When he switched lanes, the van pulled up right next to him. When he sped forward, the van did as well. "I think it's following us."

"What is that guy doing?" Hiro asked, Claire, Zach, and Britt just watched it. The man in the front seat seemed determined to follow them. He was wearing all black and had black hair with a beard. He seemed like Sylar, but he wasn't.

Ando just kept driving, trying not to focus on the van. When he got off onto another highway, the van followed. "Ok, this is getting weird." Ando wondered out loud.

Claire, Zach, and Britt all eventually took their eyes off the van. After a few hours the van disappeared. "It's gone." Britt announced to Ando.

"Good." Ando sighed. "That was starting to creep me—"

Before Ando finished that sentence, the Van came skidding off the side of the road and T-boned their car. Everything went black from their. Zach slammed into Claire, who slammed into Britt. The air bags popped out sending the three back the other way. Ando jumped on the breaks as the car spun out of control and suddenly stopped. The car skidded to the side of the road which dipped into an incline. The car rolled down and stopped in the ditch at the bottom. The Van stopped and the driver got out. "Perfect." He grinned.

**Isaac's Apartment, New York City**

"Hiro and Ando won't answer their phone." He told Peter who was on the other line.

"Where might they be about now?" Peter asked, just now taking notice of what Isaac said. He was at home, Nathan had confined him to bed rest after he collapsed in Odessa.

"I don't know. When they called last night they had gotten a room for a few hours' sleep and started driving again around four." Isaac replied, balancing the phone on his shoulder while he cleaned up some paint.

"Well, call me when you know something." Peter replied sighing.

"I will." Isaac said, clicking the phone off and then back on so he could try calling again.

**Highway, Oklahoma **

Cars were driving by, their drivers watching the scene closely, not one stopping, assuming the next car would. Hiro's cell phone began ringing in his pocket. He was out cold so the phone was left there.

The man jumped down the incline and opened the back car door. The glass fell down from the broken window. Another man opened the back of the van and followed. He pulled Zach out first and put him onto the ground. He secured Zach's wrists behind him with ductape and dragged him up and into the back of the van. Once they did the same to Britt and Claire, they started the van and drove off, leaving Hiro and Ando.


	6. Insert Clever Chapter Title Here

_Remember, the more reviews, the faster the chapters go up. wink, wink! Enjoy!_

**Highway, Oklahoma**

Hiro slowly came to as his cell phone persistently rang. He groggily opened his eyes and looked around him. Ando had blood dripping down his face and was still out cold. Hiro instinctively looked into the back seat and saw no one. It then hit him what happened.

"Ando! Ando! Wake up!" He said quickly in Japanese. Ando finally regained consciousness and felt his head. He pulled his hand back and saw blood. He jerked upright.

"What happened?" He asked quickly.

"That van, it crashed us!" Hiro replied in English before repeating in Japanese, "The car that followed us crashed into us!"

"No." Ando said, looking around him at their smashed up vehicle. He looked into the back seat. "Where are they?"

"I don't know. They were gone when I woke up." Hiro said, pulled his seat belt off and climbing out of the car.

"That man… in the van… he must have taken them." Ando said as the cell phone began to ring again, "Hello?"

"Ando!" Isaac said on the other side, "Where've you been? How far along are you guys?"

"We got into an accident… the kids… they are gone." Ando replied solemnly.

"What? They're gone? Where?"

"Well, there was this van that was following us, and it hit us and we went off the road… that's all I remember. When I woke up… they were gone." Ando said as he too climbed out of the car. He saw the back door was open and all of their things were still there. Zach's camera was lying on the back seat.

"This isn't good." Isaac said, "Ok, try to reach Claire on her cell phone, and if she wont answer, then call me back, we'll decide what happens from there."

"Ok Isaac." Ando replied, "Talk to you soon."

Ando reached for Zach's camera and looked at the screen, before the tape ran out, it caught the door being opened by someone from the outside, then is cut off. "Hiro… I think they've been kidnapped."

**Highway, Northern Texas**

"How much longer, Vick?" A man in the passenger seat of the black van asked.

"However long it takes." The man with the black hair replied. "Don't worry, it shouldn't be too long."

"Good, the others will be waiting right?"

"Yes, now shut up… I think they're waking up." Vick snarled. He looked behind at the three laying on the cold floor of the van.

Zach moved a little before opening his eyes. He saw the back of the front seats. He instinctively tried to push himself up back couldn't, his wrists were ductaped behind him. Zach looked on either side of him and saw Claire and Britt each tied as well and out still. "Claire? Britt? Wake up!" he said, bumping Britt. He looked around at the surroundings and came to the conclusion that they'd been kidnapped.

"Ah, finally awake I hear." Vick said.

"Who the hell are you?" Zach asked him. "Where are you taking us?"

"That's not your concern." Vick replied.

"What do you mean?" Zach asked, suddenly Claire's phone began to vibrate, waking her up.

"What the hell?" She asked after taking in everything. "Where are we?"

"Damn it." Vick said, looking back their. "I thought you made sure they didn't have any items with them Dan!"

"I thought I did." Dan replied, pulling his seat belt off so he could climb back there. He pulled Claire into a sitting position by the arm and grabbed her cell from her jeans. "Unknown caller it says. Should I answer it?"

_It's Ando I bet. _Claire thought, _I never got to add his number after I gave him mine. Damn it._

"Don't answer it you idiot, toss it out the window. With that the cops could track us." Vick replied as Dan passed it up. Vick threw it off the bridge they were on and it hit the water abruptly ending the ringing.

_There goes our hope of being rescued…_

Britt next came back to consciousness. She sat up immediately despite being tied up and looked Dan right in the eye. "Who the hell are you?" She asked.

"I'm your kidnapper, pleased to meet you." He said sarcastically. "Now if you all cooperate, you won't be harmed until you reach your destination."

"_Until_ we reach our destination?" Britt asked as Zach sat up and bumped into her.

"We're here." Vick said, pulling into a small airport in the middle of what appeared to be a dessert. "This ain't your final destination, though."

"What are you talking about?" Claire asked. Vick shook his head and climbed out. The night sky was thick with stars from this area. Britt looked up and guessed they were far from any cities. Just this small airport and a few towns they passed.


	7. What's YOUR ability?

_Thanks for the reviews on chapter 6. As I've said, reviews make my day, even if you're not into the story much, I like reading them. _

**Highway, Oklahoma**

"There's no answer." Ando said, putting the phone down and dialing Isaac's number. "Hi, Isaac, we got no answer."

"Damn." Isaac replied, "Well, I'd bet as good as anything her family got to us. I'll be on the next flight to Odessa, meet me there."

"Alright. Well, we'd better start walking." Ando sighed, opening the trunk of the car to retrieve their luggage. Hiro shook his head.

"Why are we going back to Odessa? What if the kids were taken by the man that attacked them?" He asked, pulling his bag out.

"Isaac doesn't think so and he's the one who can see the future, once we meet him we'll be able to go on from there." Ando replied.

"Well… why don't we try to find the van?" Hiro asked as they turned from the smoking vehicle and started walking.

"Because we need to first look through everything. For now we need to find another rental car." Ando said as they climbed the incline and walked along the side of the highway.

**Small Airport, Unknown Location**

Vick yanked Zach out of the back first and half dragged him, half walked him to a small airplane. A man walked out of the hangar and watched him. Dan grabbed Britt and Claire and tossed the carelessly to the ground before picking them up again. The man watched all of this before stepped towards them.

"You finally got here." He said as each were slammed onto the ground again. The man got into a kneeling position and looked at each. "Whats your power?" He asked Claire who looked confused. How did this guy know she had a power?

She was silent at first, not wanting to tell him. She swallowed back the nauseous feeling creeping up her throat and remained silent. Zach and Britt looked over at her._ This must be why they've taken us. _She thought, as the man looked up at Dan and Vick who shrugged. _But why'd they take them? _

"Alright I'm not playing games." The man said, "Answer the question, we know you have powers."

"I… I…" Claire stuttered at first, "I can h-heal."

"There we go. That's good. Now write that down, Claire is it?" He asked and Vick grabbed a clipboard from inside the van. Claire nodded. "Alright. Let's move on." He moved down the line and kneeled to Britt's eye-level. "And what's your power?"

"Why do you need to know?" She snarled in return.

"Ah, spunky are we?" The man said grinning, "I don't think you should speak to us like that, look at the state you're in."

"I don't see any reason to tell you what my power is." Britt said, tilting her head to look through the clipboard and read backwards. All is said was each of their names and some boy named Micah. Next to Claire's name it said healing. She knew it, she was quite happy that she wasn't alone. Quickly distracted from the situation, she shook her head to restore her regular vision and looked back at them.

The man got right in her face and said "You tell us, or we'll be forced to do something you won't like."

"And what's that?" Britt asked and Zach elbowed her in the back.

"Just tell us." The man repeated.

"You weren't planning on doing anything, you were just going to scare me." Britt grinned and the man pulled out a knife. The grin faded quickly.

"Now, what were you saying?" Vick said laughing.

"I have enhanced vision." Britt said, "Are you done now?"

"Elaborate."

"Come on, Infrared, X-ray, night, zoom. Happy now?"

"Very much so, now, Zach, what's yours?"

"I don't have one." Zach replied, looking down.

"Ok, its either you have pyrokenisis, or you can control technology." The man said, "You're on the list, theres no way you don't have a power."

_Great… I just learned my two friends have magical abilities while being in the middle of nowhere kidnapped with three men that are capable of hurting us and now they're saying I have something… wait. Didn't I set that dude's jacket on fire? Maybe I do have something…_

"The first one." Zach said, hoping that it was the fire one. Well, Pyro, right?

"Good. Now get them on the plane." The man said taking the clipboard and walking back to the hangar.

Vick and Dan tossed them into the plane, Vick made sure they were secure and slammed the door shut. He hopped off the wing and into the hangar. Dan was already there. The man took a briefcase from a table and opened it. There was several hundred dollars inside.

"50, 000, right?" The man asked.

"Exactly, we'll keep in touch, if we're needed for the last one." Vick asked as he closed the briefcase.

"Well, the last lives near our facility, this, is secret, but I will say, the youngest ones convert the best." The man laughed and turned to leave.

"Wait." Dan said, blocking the way.

"What?" The man asked, apparently annoyed.

"These kids, they all have these abilities, right? What are you going to do with them?"

"I've already made that clear. It's confidential. Now get back to your boss before this becomes suspicious." The man said quietly and walked around Dan and out of the hangar.


	8. The Hunter

_**Here's chapter 8, thank you ever so much for the reviews! Keep reading a surprise is headed your way in the next few chapters. **_

**Airport, Unknown Location**

"S-so, we all have odd abilities… huh?" Zach stuttered, trying to make conversation between them as they sat in the plane.

"Well, this is the second time you've found out about my healing." Claire said, as she looked towards the hangar. "So… is that why your eyes are that color?" She asked Britt.

"I guess…" Britt sighed, "I'm more concerned about what these guys are going to do with us…"

"I don't know." Claire said, swallowing hard. "Obviously something with our abilities. And Zach... you have a power."

"I guess I do… so, I guess, maybe you aren't so crazy." Zach said, shifting his weight off of his hands. Claire's face broke into a smile.

"We'll survive, what can they do to us, we're the one's with the… powers." Britt said, as she watched the man exit the hangar and step over to the plane. He jumped on to the wing and into the front pilot's seat.

"Everyone ready?" He asked, "Like you have a choice."

They remained silent as they took off. Everyone started feeling tense. What could these guys do to them? The plane began to descend after a little more than an hour had passed. During the trip everyone remained silent. Claire leaned on Zach's shoulder for comfort. Britt looked over at Zach as she did and quickly looked toward the side of the plane. Zach smiled slightly at Claire and rested his head on her head.

Claire felt bad for getting these two in this situation, she felt it was all her fault that they were here. If she told them that though, she knew they would tell her to shut up. She wondered what her parents thought as they arrived home that night, and saw the house in a wreck with blood everywhere. She knew they would be in a wreck. She also wondered what her dad thought. He would know she was fine, but what would he do? Would he save her? Or was he the cause of this? No, he couldn't be… could he?

Zach felt Claire's head under his chin and for the first time since they woke up in the van, he felt happy. Happy that Claire came to him for comfort… or just a pillow, he liked the comfort one though. He wondered if he could be falling for Claire, no, not this quickly… they really just met each other. He wondered what they did together during the part of his life he didn't remember. He wondered if they went out or not. He hoped so. Then his mind drifted to his family, what would they think about his disappearance?

As she peered through the side of the plane, Britt wondered what was going to happen to them… and whether or not these guys would feed them. Would they starve them? _No, they have to keep us_ _alive right?_ She hoped so. Then she realized how dumb her thoughts sounded and let her mind, or lack-there-of, drift into thoughts of Odessa and the yellow caution tape, he family's sobbing, her Mom… Had she done the right thing by running off with the Asian men? It was not really a thinking thing, it was "This man is after us, lets go with the first safe haven we come across. Now that had been a mistake.

Britt noticed they were approaching the ground. But they weren't landing at an airport. It was a long runway near a large metal building.

"Welcome to our destination." The man said as the plane jerked to a stop. He took off his headphones and looked back at them. He opened to side door and hopped onto the wing. A couple men walked out of the steel building and waved. They made their way over to him and talked for a second.

"God, do I wish I had enhanced hearing." Britt complained as they all leaned towards the window and watched.

"Ok, where do you want them Chuck?" On of the men asked the pilot who was apparently Chuck.

"Bring them to Cell 14. I want them prepared fortesting. And don't let them get a look at the surroundings." Chuck said and he walked into the building. The other two nodded and headed for the plane. The first opened the door and threw Zach to the ground on his stomach. He tied a black cloth around his eyes and left him laying there.

"Don't move kid." He snarled as Claire was thrown down next to him, followed by Britt. Once they were all blindfolded and their bindings were checked, they were forced to their feet and lead into the building.

**Odessa, Texas**

Mr. Bennett walked roughly into the familiar secret area in his company. He looked very disgruntled. He walked into the room where two men were sitting. Each worked for him.

"Claire's gone." He breathed, "You two were supposed to be protecting her. You were supposed to watch over her and make sure this wouldn't happen. She could be off with another one for all I know. I want everyone on this case now! Notify the rest of the testing facilities of her disappearance. I want her found. Now."

"We will get right on it." They nodded as another man walked in. He was medium height, looked to be around 21 years old. He had blonde spiked hair with blue tips. He was wearing a brown leather jacket and brown cargo pants. He nodded at Mr. Bennett.

"Chris, you're my top hunter, I need you to help me." Mr. Bennett said, "My daughter is gone, We don't know if she was kidnapped or what but you need to find her."

"Do you have any clues as to where she is?" Chris asked, sitting down at the round table.

"No. All I know is, a few of my own left a few months ago with plans of their own. They could use her as leverage to get me to turn the organization. Then there's Peter Petrelli, he's the one who saved her at the Homecoming game. The only other lead is Sylar. He might have her as well, and if that's the case," He took a deep breath and continued, "She's dead."

"I'm on it, any locations pop up at all?" Chris asked, before getting to his feet.

"The men that left went to Nevada, but New York also in the picture. I'm guessing she was kidnapped, because I had him clean her slate." Mr. Bennett sat down, "Chris, I'm counting on you."

"Don't worry." Chris said, going towards the door, "I'll find her, and I'll bring back any other I find."

"Good." Mr. Bennett nodded.


	9. The Mission

**Odessa. Texas**

"Hey. Dude, it's been a while." Chris said as he walked up to a black van with two guys sitting around it.

"It sure has." Vick said, clapping Chris on the back.

"How you been?" Dan asked.

"Just doing some jobs for Bennett. What have you been up to?"

"We just dropped some people off to some guy. Not exactly sure, they're going to Nevada." Dan said. He lit a cigarette and stuck it between his teeth. Vick stomped on his foot.

"What are you talking about?" He asked through gritted teeth.

"You dropped off who, now?" Chris asked, leaning on the van with a look of interest.

"Nothing."

"Dan wouldn't have said that, if it were nothing." Chris said raising an eyebrow.

"Well its nothing." Vick said.

"You trust me guys, I can keep a secret. We're all in the same boat."

"Alright, do you promise not to tell him?" Vick hissed.

"Sure." Chris replied, grinning.

"Okay, well, theres a place out near Las Vegas, its like what Bennett has going on here, but its different. We picked up three kids and brought them there. It got us a hell of a lot of money, I'm telling you that. Those kids must have been worth something." Vick grinned, patting his pocket, now Chris noticed that it bulged somewhat.

"Oh, that's all, I was expecting something cool." Chris bluffed, "I gotta go, Bennett's calling."

Chris walked off grinning at his new discovery; he knew where she was now, just to get her back. He walked around the corner of the building and suddenly transformed into a scruffy dog with the same color hair as him. The dog took off down a side street and disappeared from view.

**Warehouse, Just Outside Las Vegas**

When Claire, Zach, and Britt finally regained their vision, they were each in separate rooms, each with a barred door and bars separating them. A man walked, first into Claire's room. Out of instinct, she backed up until she hit the wall. He just grabbed Claire by the arm and twisted her around, cutting the tape binding her wrists. The same was done to Britt and Zach. The man took the tape and walked out, slamming the doors shut with a bang.

Each of the three looked around the room. There was nothing but a small bed and sink in each. Claire went up to the bars of hers and looked in. Zach's cell was right next to it, then Britt's was next to his. She let out a sigh and didn't say anything. None of them did.

"So…" Britt began, trailing off. "How are you guys?" She asked lamely.

Claire just stared at her before laughing. When she stopped she said, "I'm just fine, being locked up in some place with some mysterious guys after discovering that my two best friends have powers just like me. It's all good."

Then Zach laughed, "Well when you put it that way, it sounds interesting." He leaned against the bed and looked over at her, getting a more serious expression. "But seriously, what do you think these guys are going to do to us?"

"You never know." Claire replied, "I just hope someone finds us before they get the chance to do something really bad." She sighed.

"If I were to focus for a sec, I could try and looked through the wall." Britt suggested, both the others looked at her nodding. Britt looked at the wall and concentrated. It became transparent to her eyes and she saw a large room with machinery. Two men walked through holding briefcases. Britt focused more on the scene and scanned for any clues as to where they were. She got nothing. Then she tried the ceiling, maybe there was another floor. She watched as three muscular men walked out of the room. "I got nothing…" She sighed.

"It's okay." Claire said, and suddenly stopped as they heard footsteps.

They steadily grew louder and louder, someone was heading down the stairs. A man approached them with a curious look on his face.

**Odessa, Texas**

Mr. Bennett entered a small room in the secret area of his work. He clicked open his cell phone and dialed a number, then put it to his ear.

"Hi, Eden." He said to the person on the other end.

"Hey, have you heard any news on Claire yet?" Eden replied from the other end of the phone.

"No, I still haven't found Claire." Mr. Bennett sighed

"You've got Jake on it right?" Eden asked, signaling a cab.

"Yes, Jake's on it… Well, I have a different job for you." Mr. Bennett said, "I need you to bring me Peter Petrelli, and search his apartment while you're at it. Jake might be there in search of Claire." He finished and leaned against the wall and looked into the hall.

"Fine." Eden said as she got into the cab.

"Thanks, call me when you get him." Mr. Bennett said and closed the flip-phone.

**Warehouse, Just outside Las Vegas**

A small plane circled the warehouse. It landed on the long runway and stopped at the end. The pilot hopped out from one side and wiped sweat from his face. Chris got out from the other side. He pointed towards the warehouse and the pilot replied with a nod. Chris walked towards the warehouse and in through a side door.

"Who're you?" A scruffy man asked; he was holding a shotgun.

"Who am I?" Chris asked, smoothly, "_I_ am the newest agent, on the tech kid's case. _I_ am here to take in the next one, now where's _my_ team?"

"Oh yes, its you. Your team is waiting down the hall, they're hard to miss." He growled, he pointed towards a door a little way down the hall.

"Thank you." Chris said, patting the man on his shoulder and walking off. The man just stood there, wanting badly to shoot him.

**_Now, I know what you're thinking… Eden's dead right? Technically, if Sylar were never captured, then she wouldn't be dead. Yay! Please review! They make me happy! Besides, the more reviews I get, the faster the chapters go up! _ **


	10. The Job

**Peter's Apartment, New York**

Eden entered the apartment after talking the landlord into letting her in. She made sure to be extra quiet in case there was someone else there besides Peter. She crept down the short hall and towards the first door. She opened the door and looked inside. It was the bathroom, nothing special happening in there.

Eden next opened the door across from it. It was the right one. Peter was asleep. She walked over and put her hand on his shoulder. He woke up instantly and said "What… who are you?"

"Shhh." Eden replied, sitting down next to him, "You're coming with me back to Odessa."

"What are you talking about?" He asked, "Who are you?"

"A friend," She whispered and her voice took the form of persuasion, "You really want to head to Odessa, go to Odessa with me, its about Claire."

"Claire?" He asked, but then nodded. "Ok, let's go."

Without another word, he climbed out of bed and packed a bag, leaving Eden sitting there grinning. Peter got cleaned up and came out of the bathroom, completely ready to go. He looked like he had no thoughts going through his head, just silently following Eden's directions.

"Ready?" She asked, standing, "You _are ready…"_

"Yes, I am." Peter agreed and followed her out of the apartment.

**Las Vegas, Nevada**

"Dad… why… why hasn't Mom come home?" A young boy with dark curly hair asked his father, a muscular dark skinned man. "I mean, she's in jail now?"

"Micah, your mom went away for a little while, but don't worry, she'll be home soon." His dad replied, with a faked smile.

"Come on Dad, I know where she went…" Micah replied solemnly, "But, why?"

"It's complicated, son, your mom, well, Jessica, did some bad things… and…" He trailed off, thinking of how to tell his son why exactly Nikki Sanders had gone to jail. "She… she…"

"What kinds of bad things?" Micah asked, sitting down on his bed. His father sat next to him.

"Well. I don't know." D.L Hawkins lied.

"Dad." Micah said, seeing through the lie immediately, "I know you know."

"Well," D.L began, but then the doorbell rang from across the house. D.L got up and crossed the living room and looked out the window. A man in a suit was standing outside with two police officers. He backed away from the door, not knowing what to expect if he opened. He swallowed hard, knowing he was technically still on the run.

One of the officers saw the curtains move. "Someone's inside." He told his partner. The other stepped up to the door and knocked hard.

"We know you're in there Hawkins. Its okay, we just want to talk about your wife, Nikki Sanders." The man in the suit called from outside.

D.L slowly opened the door and looked at them without a word. They stepped inside. Micah watched from the hallway around the corner.

"Mr. Hawkins, your wife confessed the crime that you were convicted of. She told us everything." The man said, "I am her lawyer, could you come with us down to the station to speak with your wife?"

"Ah… well, I would, but my son is here…" D.L replied. "Can I get a second to find a sitter?"

"Take your time, meet us at the police station." The man replied, stepping outside. The police officers followed and they walked down the path. D.L shut the front door and breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't know what to think.

Chris watched silently as the officers left D.L's home. He watched them drive away and Chris took out binoculars. He put them to his eyes and watched D.L walk across an uncovered window. He made sure it was impossible for his partners to see this without the binoculars and turned to them, then said "All clear Aaron, it looks like the kid's the only one there."

"Good, we're going to go in there and you park the car around back, we'll meet you there in ten minutes." Aaron replied, giving a thumbs up. Chris nodded and walked casually towards the car and got in the driver's seat.

Aaron and his partner, Chase, walked around the back of the house and looked in. At the time, they only saw Micah, seeing as it was Micah's room. They walked towards the door to the kitchen and tried it, it was unlocked. They slowly walked inside and went as quietly as possible towards Micah's room. Then D.L walked into the kitchen. He saw the open door and walked outside to see if Micah went out there. Then her heard Micah scream for him from inside.

"DAD!" Micah shouted as the men came at him. Chase whirled around.

"Dad?" Chase asked when all of a sudden, D.L's arm came out his stomach and back through covered in blood. Chase dropped to the floor twitching.

"Don't you touch my son." He growled at Aaron who went to run. D.L got him and threw his head into the wall. Aaron threw a punch that went through D.L's arm. D.L kicked him in the gut and threw him into the hall. "Stay here Micah." He panted.

D.L kicked Aaron in the head and grabbed him around the neck, smashing him into the floor. "Why are you here?" He shouted. Aaron gave him no reply but just struggled under his grip. D.L pulled him up and then threw him back into the floor. Aaron punched D.L, sending him back barely. He jumped into a kneeling position and then punched D.L in the gut. D.L grabbed his hand and threw it into the wall so his whole body was forced to follow. He took the back of Aaron's head and shoved it into the wall again and Aaron passed out. He jumped to his feet and ran back to Micah. Chase was gone and Micah was hiding in the closet.

"What… what happened Dad?" He stuttered, stepping out of the closet.

"I don't know son, but I'm going to call 911, come with me." D.L breathed, taking deep breaths.

**Warehouse, Just Outside Las Vegas**

"We thought we could run some tests before we start working deals." The man said as he approached the rooms and brought the three out. "Don't worry, those are just precautions."

"What do you mean, tests?" Claire asked, ignoring his comment on the cells.

"We want to see how well your powers work, the better you do, the longer we keep you around." He replied chuckling. "My name's Russ by the way."

"Well, _Russ_, I'm glad you're being so casual and nice but I'd still like to know…." Britt's voice rose, "…why the hell you freaks took us!!"

"Hey, if you want the nice crap to continue, then _don't _speak to me like that. I have the power to declare you useless and kill you right here." He growled, holding a pistol out.

"Well in that case, shoot me right here you…." Britt was pulled backwards by Zach. Zach sighed and pushed her to the side.

"So, what is the reason you've taken us?" He asked, stepped right towards Russ.

"The reason, is so you can help us." Russ replied as he pulled a knife out of the closet.

"Help you with what?" Claire asked.

"The takeover." Russ simply said and held the knife at eye level.


	11. The Escape

**_Newest Chapter with a suprise. Ooooh, please review!_ **

**--------- **

**Warehouse, Just Outside Las Vegas**

Chris pulled silently into the drive near the hangar. He grabbed a hand gun from the glove compartment and checked his cell. He put it in his pocket, on silent mode and fixed a silencer to the gun. He loaded it and stashed it in his pocket. He checked around to make sure no one was watching and transformed into a small rat. The rat, Chris, jumped inside through a vent and crawled along the metal airway. He came to another vent, leading inside.

Chris slowly pushed the vent up and off it's brackets. He looked out around him and saw that the hall was empty. He hopped out and returned to his normal state.

"Phase one, complete." He muttered and pulled the gun out.

-----

"What the hell is that for?" Britt asked really fast as Russ turned back to them.

"Claire's test." He said simply. Claire's eyes grew wide. Russ approached her with the knife, "Just hold still, you know this wont hurt, I just want to see your power.

Claire backed up. She knew it wouldn't hurt, but it seemed really weird. Russ snatched her arm and brought the knife across it, creating a long, deep cut. Claire flinched even though no pain was felt during it. Russ watched the cut and it healed, the blood zooming back in.

"Impressive." Russ grinned and he took out a candle. "You're next Fire Boy."

-----

Chris rounded a corner and held the gun out. The man with the shotgun slowly came down the hall with it on his shoulder. Chris backed up into the wall around the corner. The man came around and saw Chris, the next second he fell dead with a bullet in his brain.

Chris took off down the hall which ended in a staircase. He slid down the rail and saw three men sitting around a table at the bottom. He jumped behind the wall and got ready to fire.

He hit the first man off his seat with a bullet. The other two jumped to their feet and brought out their pistols. Chris knew he couldn't let them fire or else everyone would hear. He leaned out and fire at the middle one, but he missed. Gunshots rang through the room.

"Dammit." He snarled and checked the gun. Chris ran back towards the stairs and into the hall. The men followed. He snatched the shotgun from the body of the first victim and sped back to the stairs where the men were. He aimed as soon as he opened the door and fired. The loud "boom" echoed as the second man fell.

The last man aimed his gun at Chris. "Come quietly Hurley. We knew it."

"Knew what?" Chris asked, holding the shotgun threateningly.

"We knew you were a rat. Here to save those kids?" He snarled.

"Yeah. You were right, but you wont be around to receive your recognition." And with that, Chris took the silenced gun and shot the man dead.

-----

"What was that?" Russ asked, turning from the candle he was trying to get Zach to light. Russ turned around and looked towards the door. "Don't. Move." He hissed.

Russ took out his pistol and went quietly down the hall. He spotted the dead man, next to the table and gritted his teeth. Russ ran up the stairs and towards the door. He slowly reached out to open it, he pulled the door open quickly and aimed the gun inside. No one was there. He stepped out and looked around. The hall was empty except for the two bodies.

"Dammit." He sighed and turned around.

Chris grabbed him around the neck and snapped it, he threw the lifeless form to the ground and dashed down the stairs. He looked around, not exactly sure where to go. He ran across the one room and threw a door at the far end. Once inside there, he walked quietly towards the barred door and in, making sure no one was there. He aimed the gun inside. Claire stepped back as the barrel came close to her face.

"Hey." Chris said as he stepped in and lowered the gun.

"Uh… hey?" Britt asked, backing up.

"Oh, right, I work for your father and I need to get you out of here. He sent me."

"My father?!" Claire called, "Oh no… I can't go home, I…. shit."

"We don't have time, lets go." Chris said as he ushered them out towards the hallway. They ran for the big room, then up the stairs.

"What is going on?" Zach asked as they ran.

"Shh, they'll probably figure this out!" Chris replied as they neared the exit that was now guard-less.

"HEY! STOP!" Shouted someone running down the hall.

All four of them sped up. They heard the men shouting about snipers. They dashed towards the helicopter where the pilot opened the door waiting.

"Shit! Snipers!" Chris shouted, "Go, go, go!"

They ran even faster as Chris shot behind them at the men that pursued them. Bullets landed all around from the snipers on the roof. Claire jumped into the plane and the rest were almost there when, Zach tripped. He hit the concrete hard. Britt skidded to a stop to help him up. She pulled him up and tripped herself as he ran for it. He jumped into the plane and turned, thinking she was right there, but she wasn't. Britt hit the concrete hard, taking her last breath. A sniper's bullet had hit home in her back. She fell limp on the ground, leaving everyone speechless. Chris killed the last man and gasped.

"Oh my God!" The pilot shouted, wide-eyed as two men ran out with machine guns. Bullets poured from the guns and all around Chris. Chris ran for Britt but everyone knew she was dead and they couldn't risk themselves for the body. He turned around and ran for the chopper. As he jumped in, everyone was watching the window.

_**Gasp!**_


	12. Trust

**_Thanks for the reviews everyone, the good and the... bad, lol. Here's #12 hope you enjoy it!_  
**

**  
Odessa Texas**

Peter and Eden walked down the long hall of the secret part of Primatech. They turned the corner and walked into a white room. Mr. Bennett stepped from the far corner. "Hello Mr. Petrelli." He said.

"You, you're… you're her, Claire's father… right?" Peter replied, dropping his duffle bag and getting a look around. Eden watched carefully.

"Yes, I am." Mr. Bennett replied. "I have a question about Claire… and yourself Peter, I know about your problem. Maybe if you'd like to stay here, we…"

"Do you think you can help me?" Peter asked, almost excitedly.

"I believe I can, if you can help me."

"Anything." Peter said.

"First, let me know about your problem."

"Well, this dream that I had… I had, its almost as if… I, well, I was exploding." Peter replied, feeling uneasy.

"Exploding?" Mr. Bennett asked. "If you would stay here, then I could help you."

"_You should really stay Peter." _

"If you can help me, this is great." Peter grinned.

"Yes." Mr. Bennett said, turning his stare to Eden. She nodded and left.

-------

The entire helicopter was silent as it approached the landing space. It touched down right near the water tower.

"I'm sorry." The pilot said as he stopped the blades. He opened the door to the chopper and hopped out, then he opened the door for them. Chris got out, then Claire and Zach.

They walked silently towards a car parked nearby. Chris unlocked the car with the keys from his pocket and opened the trunk. He wasn't sure what to say to them, he wasn't sure what would make them feel better. On the other hand he needed to figure out what they would tell the cops. He was planning on having them believe that they found Claire and Zach but Britt was murdered by Sylar. Where was Sylar? Chris wanted to kill Sylar more than ever.

They piled into the car and Chris started the engine. "So…" He began, the stony silence finally getting to him.

"Why?" Claire asked, "I mean, if I hadn't of gotten her into this… she wouldn't be… gone."

"It's not your fault." Zach said, putting his arm around her.

"It is though…" She replied.

Chris sighed and dialed his cell phone. He listened to the rings until they were interrupted by "Hello?"

"Hey, Mr. Bennett, it's Chris." He said, "Listen, I'm back, I've got Claire and her friend."

"_That's great. Good, bring them straight to the house. It's been cleaned up as best as possible for now. I'll meet you there as soon as I can." _Mr. Bennett replied from the other end.

"Ok, see you there." Chris flipped the phone shut.

"Was that my dad?" Claire asked, sitting forward immediately.

"Yeah, why?" Chris answered.

"Oh, no." Claire said.

"Why is that bad?" Chris asked, "Oh…"

"You know?" Claire asked.

"Yeah, I mean, I work for your father, how would I not know."

"Listen, Chris, right?"

"Yes."

"Well," Claire paused, "Last time something like this happened, my dad sent him and he erased his memory." She gestured at Zach.

"Yeah." Zach nodded.

"He didn't do mine because he said I need to remember."

"Well, there must have been a reason." Chris said to the rear-view mirror. "Your dad always has a reason and I guess the Haitian has his reasons."

"Everything about my life has been a lie." Claire said, "My dad has taken everything, even Zach and now I have Zach back. I can't lose him again."

"I can't lose her either." Zach chimed in. Claire looked at him.

"And now, I even lost another person and she was just like me."

"I apparently have an ability too though." Zach reminded her.

"Oh yeah."

"Wait. You have one too?" Chris asked, turning around, making the car swerve. He grabbed the wheel just in time to turn towards the neighborhood. The car pulled into the neighborhood. Claire spotted her house immediately. Two cop cars were still parked in front along with a few new vans.

"Those guys said I do." Zach replied to Chris's question.

"Hmm…" Chris thought about it for a second but they were interrupted by the flash of several cameras. Matt Parkman rushed into the front yard.

Claire opened the car door and three police men rushed to the car to block off the photographers and reporters. She walked slowly up the driveway followed by Chris and Zach. Matt met her in the front and her mom shouted her name and ran towards her. Zach simply grinned slightly at the sight but immediately stopped, thinking of Britt's parents. Matt ushered him up with them but he was stopped by another officer who told him that Zach needs to see his own family.

Once in the house, doors locked to avoid reporters, Matt, Chris, Claire, and her mother sat in the living room, what was left of it. Mrs. Bennett hugged her daughter about twenty-eight times before Matt began to ask them questions.

"Claire. Man, I know you've been through a lot, I'm just going to ask a few questions and then you can rest." Matt said, Claire nodded, "Was it the same man as before that attacked you?"

"I'm… I'm almost positive." She stuttered. "He tried to do… it… to us."

"All three of you?" Matt asked.

"Yeah…"

"Ok, and the other two, Zach and Brittany, was…" He trailed off, "Was she… killed?"

Claire swallowed hard before telling him, "Yes. After the man came…" She choked a little, "We were kidnapped by two other men and they brought us somewhere else…."

"Well, they were taken to some research facility and I came for them." Chris took over, "When we were escaping, the girl was killed by machine gun fire."

"Research facility?" Matt asked.

"Yeah, I don't know what for…" Chris lied.

"Well, I guess we'd better call this in, don't worry Claire, we'll figure it out." Matt assured her and walked out.

Claire took a good look around the living room and saw that it was mainly cleaned up, the stairs were still broken, and also Britt's bag was still there with the sketch book inside. It was tagged as evidence.

Matt walked outside to Audrey who was waiting and telling the reporters to let Mr. Bennett through. "It was Sylar."

"She told you?"

"Yeah. They were taken to some research facility. I think its Sylar's."

"Sylar's?" Audrey asked.

"Yeah." Matt replied. "We're going there."

"Nice work Parkman."


	13. Rouges

**_Hey hey, awesome episode, Distractions, was, I'm glad Nathan's her father haha! Thanks for the reviews that made sense.. _**

Mr. Bennet rushed up the steps of the Bennet home and straight to his daughter. He immediately pulled her into a bone cracking hug. Claire was glad to be home but knew her dad was going to try and make her forget, she wanted to be away from him and soon. He pulled away and looked at her for a second before bringing her back to the sofa. Mrs. Bennet moved over a little bit.

"I'm so glad your safe." He told Claire, smiling. "But what happened? Who attacked you?"

"It was…." Claire almost revealed "The same guy as last time." But she quickly stopped and said "I don't know."

"Ah, and then, where did those men take you? What did they want?"

_Why do I have to go through this again… _Claire thought, because the officers had just asked her story. "You know, I'm tired."

"I think we should let her rest." Sandra said, "Besides, those reporters and police questioning will be swarming her."

"I agree." Mr. Bennet almost sighed, "Get some rest Claire-Bear."

"I'm glad to be home." Claire smiled, but bowed her head as she walked up the stairs towards her room. She flopped down on her bed and closed her eyes.

-----

Mr. Bennet walked back through the doors of his underground facility in Primatech. He stormed into the meeting room where three of his men sat, looking as though a tornado was coming.

"How could this have happened?" He growled.

"Mr. Bennet, sir, we know who started the place." One of the men said quickly.

"Who was it? I want them taken back here. I don't want police action involved. Get them back here and get the Haitian in here. Now." Mr. Bennet snarled. The men scattered and Eden stepped inside.

"The doctor is finished with Peter's tests." She said quietly, sensing the heat waves coming from him.

"Really?" Mr. Bennet asked, looking up. He pulled his glasses off the de-fog them. "When will we get the results?"

"In a few hours." Eden replied, "What do we do with him in the mean time?"

"Ah, keep him busy Eden."

"That, I can do." Eden grinned and passed the Haitian as she left. He came in and looked at Mr. Bennet without a word.

"I need your services." Mr. Bennet told him, the Haitian nodded, "My daughter, Claire, she was kidnapped by rouges, I sent some after them, they want to take after Sylar I'm guessing. But, they wanted my daughter and they were close to getting her. Chris saved her though. I need you to do the memory game again. Make sure she forgets this, along with her friend Zachary." The Haitian nodded again, then left.

------

Sylar limped along the pathway from the water tower. He walked into the woods and sat down near a large tree. He rubbed his face and pulled his fingers through his untidy hair. _This is it, I need to get the power and soon, I've already lost the X-ray vision, I cannot afford to lose the healing. _Sylar looked up as a figure came down the path he followed. Sylar jumped to his feet, looking ready for a fight. He held his hands up and backed up to where he could run if necessary. The figure's movements slowed and it came into view. Sylar used telekinesis to lift a rock into the air. The figure came through the clearing.

"Relax Gabriel." Chris said, "It's me."

"Chris. I'm glad you're here." Sylar replied, grinning.

------

Claire slept soundly in an artificially dark room. She rolled over in her sleep and a shadow stretched across her floor. The Haitian kneeled beside her bed and put his hand over her mouth before shaking her slightly. Her eyes opened immediately and his hand muffled her startled scream. He removed his hand and nodded.

"Don't worry Claire." He told her.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, sitting up.

"Your father made me come again." He replied, standing.

"Oh no." She sighed, "Please don't do it."

"You know I wont, I will not take Zach's either. But you know what this means." He spoke quietly.

"I can't do this again." Claire protested, sighing.

"You have to, at least until you can get out of here." The Haitian gave her a weak smile.

"I've already killed someone with this, I don't know my father and my family is full of memory loss." Claire continued.

"I've got to go now." He said, shaking his head, and with that, he left.

------

"We've got them." Eden announced, walking into Mr. Bennet's office.

"The results?" He asked, swinging his chair around.

"Of course." She said, tossing the folder on his desk. He opened it and read silently.

"He contains traces of healing, flight, future visions… telekinesis… his power is power absorption. Oh my God…" He muttered, "Peter could explode. These powers he absorbs… if he absorbs anymore… he'll be a human nuke."

"Seriously?" Eden asked, surprised. "We can't let that happen."

"Indeed." Mr. Bennet replied.

"But how do we stop it?" Eden asked.

"We take him out." Mr. Bennet said simply.

_**I find it quite funny that the next episode is called Unexpected, lol. **_


	14. Loss, Love, and Betrayal

_**I'm tying some of the real Heroes events into this as well. Hope you enjoy, Zach/Claire fans will enjoy this one. Thanks for all my reviews!**_

Sylar and Chris stood staring at each other for a few minutes before someone said something. Sylar wondered how he had found him. Chris was always good at this stuff. He didn't know how though. He waited for Chris to speak, not sure what to say himself. He knew he had put Chris through a lot of trouble in not getting the kids the first time. It was their deal. Chris paid him for the fire power. But Sylar had failed and now he wasn't sure what to say except: "How'd you find me?"

Chris hesitated with that answer. He was not sure whether to reply with the truth, _Oh, I turned into a blood hound and followed your scent._ That wasn't going to work. He simply replied with "I just know you I guess."

"Well, that's good but we need to face the problem at hand, and that's killing off these kids before the kill themselves off." Sylar replied, now looking down at the ground.

"I feel like I should be telling you that fact." Chris snarled but recovered himself. "How will we get them no, no, how will _you_ get them?"

"I will do what I did last time. You distract her parents and I'll come in for the kill. And after that, we need to kill Bennett's business." Sylar said, "And destroy that before it destroys us."

"I'll handle the sabotage, but right now, we focus on this. We need to kill Bennett too, so why not just do that while we're at it. Kill the whole family?" Chris continued, "Before they're on to me and before Bennett finds out that Claire is my biological sister." The last part came out without control.

"She's your sister?" Sylar asked, a sick grin coming over his face, "This could get fun."

"What are you planning?" Chris asked, a slight grin making its way on his own face.

"We're going to have some fun before we kill them." Sylar simply said.

"That's good. I need some fun." Chris nodded and walked back through the woods.

-----

Claire walked silently home from school. It had been a really bad day. People were asking her and Zach about the kidnapping and whether or not she'd murdered Britt like she murdered Jackie. Claire sighed and wondered why people kept dropping dead around her. Zach joined her as they walked through the woods to get home.

"How are you?" He asked, putting his arm around her.

"I'm fine." She replied, lying.

"I know that's not true." He said, stopping her so they could face each other, "A man came to see me last night. He told me about the last time he took my memory and then said he wasn't taking it this time."

"He came to see me too, and my mom, and my brother." Claire told him, "I'm glad he's with us now."

"Who was he with the last time?"

"My father." Claire said, her voice shaking, "I don't know who he is. I'm not sure I want to know."

Zach opened his mouth, but closed it, then opened it again, and closed it. Claire smiled slightly seeing his troubles. She stepped closer to him, putting an hand on his shoulder.

"Have you ever had the urge to just run away?" She asked him, their faces now mere inches away.

"All the time." He said.

"The only thing keeping me here is you, Zach." She whispered, he leaned in closer and pressed his lips to hers. He put his hands in hers as the sunlight came through the trees, bathing them in warmth.

"You don't have to stay here anymore." He whispered finally as she smiled at him, "We can leave, we're a traveling freak show, we can find those Japanese guys and do what they planned all along."

Claire put her head on his shoulder and breathed, "I love you Zach."

-----

They set the plan. Zach's car, sunrise, the next day. They would drive as far as they could, preferably to New York. They were going to find Hiro and Ando and the painter and start new lives. No looking back. Chris stood behind the tree, disguised as a dog, heading back from his and Sylar's meeting. His eyes grew wide, hearing the news and immediately he ran back through the woods to Sylar.

"The kids. They're leaving. Tomorrow. Sunrise." He panted, gasping for air.

"You're kidding?" Sylar replied, then he let out a laugh, "Seems like we'll be seeing them tonight then."

-----

Claire walked up to her house, she felt happy now for the first time since everything happened. She opened the door to her house and said loudly "Mom! I'm home." When no response came, she walked into the kitchen where her mom was on the floor, out cold. "Mom!" She called and dashed to her mother's side. "Mom. Wake up, wake up!"

"Who the hell are you?" Ms. Bennet shouted. "What did you do to me?"

"Mom, I'm your daughter!" Claire replied, "Claire! I didn't do any—"

"Get out of my house before I call the police!" Sandra growled, standing immediately.

"But mom, I—"

Sandra pushed Claire towards the door, opened it and said again "Get out or I will call the police."

"Mom, it's Claire, your daughter!"

"I don't know any Claire, and I don't know you." She snarled and slammed the door in Claire's face.

Claire stared at the wooden door that had just been slammed in her face and sighed deeply. She couldn't understand at first why her mom couldn't remember her and then it hit like a ton of bricks. _My father. _She sat down on the front porch in the dark, waiting for someone to let her back in the house, cursing her father. She knew this was his fault, he had taken it to the next level. He'd hurt someone she cares about. Claire put her head in her hands and silently cried.

Chris came slowly up the driveway. "Claire. What are you doing on the front porch?" He asked, in an innocent tone.

"No reason." She replied, wiping away the tears. "I forgot my key." She lied.

"Why don't you knock?" He asked.

"I don't know…" She replied looking stupid. Chris helped her up and knocked on the door. Mrs. Bennet came to the door.

"Now Claire, what were you doing out there all alone?" She asked. Claire stared at her for a few moments, thinking_ A few minutes ago she know who I was... what the hell? _

"I forgot my key." Claire explained, quickly, recovering from what happened. She pointed at the key on the table, where she set in upon arrival the first time.

"Well dinner's on, where's your father?" Sandra asked.

"I was wondering the same thing." Chris told her, "I need to make a delivery for the paper factory and he's nowhere around."

"Ah he'll be home soon, why don't you stay for dinner." Sandra offered.

"That would be nice." Chris smiled but looked down, thinking about how he saw Claire crying, and then thinking about why he was there.

_**The memory loss thing was too good to pass off and Chris is kind of taking Sylar's place from Distractions. There's going to be a lot more action to come. Our next chapter will sort of resemble Company Man. **_


	15. Well this is a Problem

_**I love reading the reviews. Thanks guys! This chapter leads up to something big. Enjoy!**_

**The Bennet Family**

**Odessa, Texas**

"So Chris, you're wondering where my husband is too?" Sandra asked as they all sat around the table, Chris in Mr. Bennet's seat.

"Yeah. I need to do something for him, but it can wait." Chris replied, grinning.

"It's nice to see you again, Claire's little hero." Sandra smiled and took a bite of the chicken she made for everyone. Claire's face flushed red, there was nothing worse than having a "little hero". Her mind was reeling too much to take anymore notice to it.

She sat there, barely eating, mostly thinking about what her father did to Mrs. Bennet. She wondered why Chris didn't just head to the office to see her father. She wondered why he needed to see him in the first place. There was something wrong with the way Chris kept checking the clock, then out the window and then he took a bite. It kept going like this. Claire put the thoughts aside. Chris had saved her and Zach, he was a fine guy. Nothing wrong with him. Now her father on the other hand…

"So what role do you play in the paper factory?" Sandra asked, starting up some conversation.

"I… I… do deliveries." Chris replied, his eyes darting to the clock.

"Ah, you and him work together?" Mrs. Bennet asked now.

"Sure, yeah, we're very close on the job." Chris answered fast with a grin.

"Why didn't you just go see him at work?" Claire asked, they all looked at her, seeing as this was the first time she'd spoken.

"Well, um… I…" Chris trailed off, "He wasn't there."

"Well where could he be now?" Mrs. Bennet asked, putting her fork down.

"He's with a client, delivering paper probably."

"Then shouldn't you be with him?" Claire wondered aloud.

Chris looked them all up and down, kicking himself for his bad lying skills. He stood up and reached into his waistband for his gun. "Everyone in the living room." He said before he'd even grabbed the gun. "We can do this easily, or we can do this hard." He brandished the gun and held it threateningly.

Sandra's mouth dropped open and clatter of silverware could be heard. Claire stood up first, then Lyle who helped his mom up. "Chris… what are… you…?"

"This is nothing personal Sandra, you guys need to die. Your daughter's power, needs to be mine. Everyone, take a seat." He told them, he pulled the dining room chairs over to the living room. Claire sat down, silent and wondering why her life was going to hell. Lyle sat down with his mom wondering why the guy that saved Claire was now trying to kill them.

Chris locked all the doors, while pointing the gun at the three. He checked outside and saw no one. "Get comfortable, my partner will be here soon."

-----

"Sir, you can't really be serious." Eden complained as she followed Mr. Bennet down a hallway. "We can help him, someone can help him, please, don't kill him."

"Eden, please don't question me." Bennet replied, cocking his gun. The Haitian stepped out of a room, watching as the two approached the room where Peter was staying. He entered and knocked gently.

"Come in." Peter's voice was heard. Mr. Bennet stashed the gun in his waistband and walked inside.

"We have the cure to your problem!" He told Peter in an excited tone of voice.

"Really?" Peter asked, his voice filling with hope.

"Yes. Come with me to testing room three." Bennet told him and they walked down the hall. The Haitian returned to the room he was in, an expression of greif had overcome his face. Eden followed, walking slower than usual.

They walked into the testing room and had Peter sit on the table. Eden walked in along with Mr. Bennet. "Peter, when you absorb powers, they don't always agree with each other." Mr. Bennet started, "They'll overpower each other until ka-boom. They lose control and your body goes with it." Mr. Bennet nodded at Eden who solemnly said: "Close your eyes Peter."

Peter closed his eyes and Mr. Bennet pulled the gun out, aimed it at Peter's forehead and…

-----

"Don't make me tell you again." Chris snarled, "Say another word and I'll have to start killing people. Do you hear me?"

He kneeled by Claire's chair, finishing up the job of securing her hands behind the chair. He could not afford to let her escape, not now and most certainly not after he had come this far. "Sorry but I can't afford to let you go anywhere." Chris muttered. He stood up and paced in front of them. Then turned away and grabbed his phone. Claire looked over at her mother and brother and mouthed "Go." But they shook their heads and continued to sit there, Sandra holding on tight to Lyle.

"Mr. Bennet, its Chris, I… I… you need to come to your house." Chris said into the phone in his most panicked voice.

"_I'm finishing a job. What happened?" _Mr. Bennet asked, whipping freshly spilled blood from his hand.

"It's your family, they're hurt, badly. Except Claire!" He shouted the last part, "I don't know how she made it out ok, you need to get over here!"

Mr. Bennet's eye grew wide and he dropped the phone, dashing from the room and away. Eden stared at the table with the white cloth over a lump. She pulled back the sheet and looked at Peter's lifeless form. "I'm sorry." She whispered.

-----

Claire wanted to shout, anything to avoid her dad coming and falling into the trap, as much as she despised him, she didn't want him to get hurt. Chris hung the phone up. "Now its your turn." He told Claire.

"What are you talking about?" She asked him, putting on a brave front, knowing he couldn't hurt her.

"You are going to give me your friend… Zach's phone number and then invite him over."

"Why?" Claire snarled, it finally dawning on her that this man saved her and Zach.

"Just do it."

"No."

Chris snapped the phone shut and pointed the gun at her brother's head. "Tell me or he dies."

"432 615 2416." Claire breathed, closing her eyes.

"Now you're going to talk to him, like everything's fine. Invite him for dinner." Chris hissed, pressing send and holding the phone to her ear.

"_Hello?" Z_ach spoke from the other end of the phone.

"Hey, Zach." Claire said, with fake happiness. He hands moved behind her, trying to get free before she went through with this,

"_Hey Claire, is this about tomorrow?" _

"Actually yes, come on over and we'll discuss it, ok?" Claire told him and looked up at Chris with hate in her eyes.

"_Sure."_ Zach replied, _"See you in a few."_

"There. I did it." Claire snarled as Chris turned away.

"Good." Chris grinned and turned away.

Sandra looked at Claire, thinking deeply about what Chris meant about her power. This seemed to be all about Claire. What power did Claire have? This made no sense. Lyle shook his head. _Count on Claire to get us into this kind of trouble. _He thought, shaking his head. His thoughts were interrupted by the key clicking in the door. Chris immediately aimed the gun at the door.

Mr. Bennet dashed into the house but stopped and took in the scene in front of him. Claire tied to a chair, and his wife and son sitting near looking terrified. He looked between Claire, Sandra and Lyle to Chris.

"Have a seat Mr. Bennet." Chris snarled pointing to the last empty chair.

_**Man, Company Man kicked ass! **_


	16. Take a Seat

**_Here we go, Chapter 16, we're gonna get into some action soon. An "Unexpected" event happens, hehe, thanks for the reviews!_ **

**The Bennet Family… plus Chris**

**Odessa Texas**

"Chris?" Mr. Bennet asked immediately really surprised.

"Yeah, its Chris, what Bennet? Never expected this? You should have." Chris replied in a cocky tone of voice. Claire sat there without breathing a word. Sandra held on to Lyle tight, breathing fast.

"How long?" Mr. Bennet asked in a low voice, looking at each of his family members. Mr. Muggles ran behind them, looked at each and ran the other way. Then he started barking. Everyone looked towards the door. Sylar stepped in, he grinned.

"I see you've started without me." He told Chris.

"Yeah, I had to." Chris replied.

"Alright, its fine." Sylar said and he walked into the living room. Mr. Muggles ran up to him and sniffed his feet. Sylar picked him up and looked at him, "You're a cute one." He commented, "Maybe you could come with me when this is over." Mrs. Bennet gave a slight whimper.

Sylar put the dog down and walked over to the five. He kneeled next to Claire and studied her. She refused to look at him. He smiled and looked at Mr. Bennet. Claire was contemplating whether or not he would make a move to hurt any of them. Chris stood and waited for Sylar to say something. Mr. Bennet glared at both of them, knowing one was a traitor and the other was a serial killer. The silence overwhelmed them.

"After tonight they wont have to worry about him. None of you will." Chris finally said.

"That's true." Sylar replied, "It'll make it much easier to find them now."

"Find who?" Sandra asked, through gritted teeth.

"People like me." Sylar replied, "You see, I'm special."

"Sandra…" Mr. Bennet trailed off.

"Oh no, you see, you have never known what your husband can do." Chris told Sandra. "None of you know."

"I know." Claire replied solemnly. Everyone looked at her.

"What do you know?"

"I know he doesn't work in a paper factory." Claire replied. "But I'd rather talk about what the hell you're doing here."

"Hmm." Chris laughed, "I'd rather let your mother kn—" He was cut off by Sandra who had broke into a coughing fit.

"Mom?!" Lyle cried, kneeling by her as she fell forward onto her knees. Mr. Bennet fell down onto his knees next to her and caught her when she fell forward.

"MOM!" Claire screamed as she struggled with the duct-tape holding her to the chair. Sylar sat down on a chair and watched, amused. Chris looked between him and the family.

"We need to call 911." Mr. Bennet said, standing and reaching for his cell phone.

"No. We don't." Sylar replied, using his power and shoot the cell phone out of Mr. Bennet's hand. It hit the wall and fell. "Chris, drag her into the bedroom."

Chris picked her up and carried her into the master bedroom and layed her onto the bed. As he made his way back, the doorbell rang.

"Your bud's here." He grinned at Claire and pulled a pocket knife out of his pocket. With it he cut the tape and freed her. "Try anything and I will kill your mom."

Sylar pointed at the door and she stood up, ripping off the tape from her sleeve, she made her way to the door, watching Chris out of the corner of her eye. She crossed the hall thinking, _There has to be a way out of this. Please let there be a way out of this... _She reached for the doorknob and let Zach in. He walked inside and smiled.

"Hey." She said with a faked smile.

"Hey." He replied with a small smile at her. Claire looked at him with a scared look and pointed towards the living room so only he could see. Then she locked the door. He looked at her and then said "Dinner ready?"

"Yeah." She choked, her throat dry, and led him to the other room, looking at her mom's limp form as she passed. Zach looked too. "She's asleep, rough day."

"Ah." He replied, they turned the corner and walked right into the barrel of Chris's gun.

"No need to tell anymore lies Claire." He grinned.

**Primatech Paper**

**Odessa Texas**

The Haitian entered the room and looked at Eden with an expression that said "Why did Mr. Bennet leave so soon."

"I don't know." She replied as if reading his mind. She was now sitting against the wall. "We could have helped him." She said, wiping a tear from her face."

The Haitian nodded, with a grim expression on his face.

"We didn't need to kill him." She continued as the Haitian wondered over to the table and lifted the cloth, suddenly there was coughing coming from the table. Eden jumped to her feet and ran over to him. Peter coughed and hacked and pulled a bullet from between his teeth. They both looked astonished. Peter dropped the bullet in the Haitian's hand and spit blood all over the sheet that covered him.

"Why did he shoot me?" Peter coughed, wiping more blood from his mouth.

"How did you do that?" Eden breathed.

"I… it was the girl." Peter told her, "The girl from Texas, the one I saved, she could heal."

"So you used the power and healed? How?"

"I don't know. I thought of her…when Bennet came with her to visit me, he's her dad." Peter replied, in deep thought.

**The Bennet Home**

**Odessa Texas**

"Claire? What's going on?" Zach asked as Chris lowered the gun.

"Shut up and sit down." Chris snarled, pointing the gun to the couch. Zach moved over to the couch. He gave Claire a look of disgust. "You did well Claire." Chris told her with a slight grin.

"Let me see my mom." Claire demanded, walking towards the room.

"Fine. You can see her for two minutes, any longer and someone will die." Sylar said, Chris turned to him.

"What the hell are you doing?" Chris snarled.

"Well, she should be able to see her mom once more before they're all killed." Sylar replied.

Claire walked slowly to the room and entered. It was dim due to the closed blinds and quiet. She knew Zach now thought she had lured him there. _I've gotta get out and fast, I've gotta get my mom, Lyle and Zach and run. Don't look back, maybe I can grab the keys… but that would require heading to the kitchen, no, we can run, we can get down the street and I'll use my cell to call the police. But then again, Mom… dammit Mom, wake up… _Claire kneeled next to the bed and shook her mom slightly.

"Mom, please wake up." She whispered, feeling her mom's pulse, it was slow but still there. She gritted her teeth and heard Chris moving towards the door. He entered and kept quiet for a second watching her holding onto her mom's hand and trying hard not to cry. She knew he was there, no weakness could be shown if she was going to save everyone.

"Let's go." He barked. "You better hope she dies here and not in our hands."

Claire glared at the sheets on the bed and wanting so bad to turn around and pull out a gun and shoot him in the head. She stood slowly, letting go of her mom's hand but not moving towards Chris.

"Lets go or I'll shoot her now." Chris snarled.

"Fine." Claire said quietly, and she followed him back into the living room. She sat down next to Zach who turned to her.

"What the hell is going on Claire?" He whispered.

"Look, I'm not sure right now, all I know is that Chris and that guy that tried to kill us are working together and they're planning on killing us." She replied in a low voice.

"So why did you bring me into this?"

"If I didn't, he'd kill my mom." Claire said, her voice shaking.

"Aw, man." Zach said under his breath, he looked from Chris who was talking with Sylar in to kitchen, to Mr. Bennet that was comforting Lyle on the floor in front of one of the chairs.

Mr. Bennet looked at Claire, then he got up and silently went for the key rack near the kitchen, he grabbed the keys but not without Chris noticing. Chris grabbed his from his belt and fired off three shots, right at Mr. Bennet.

**_Unexpected..._**


	17. Rescue, Kind Of

**The Bennet Family… with a few guests**

**Odessa Texas**

"DAD!" Lyle screamed, jumping to his dad's side. Mr. Bennet hit the wall and collapsed with the blood coming from his shoulder. He was letting out gasps of pain.

Claire jumped to her feet and instead of running to her father, she ran for the bedroom. Sylar ran around the counter to see if Bennet was dead. Sandra jumped awake from the sound of the gunshot. She felt her head and looked around, then she got up.

"Oh no you don't!" Chris shouted and fired off one bullet right into the back of Claire's neck. Claire fell forward and hit the wood floor with a thump. Sandra rushed for her daughter, wide-eyed and moving fast.

"Claire!!" She screamed, Lyle turned and his mouth dropped open. Zach ran to Claire's side too. "Claire, no, no, no, wake up!" Her mom sobbed, shaking Claire's lifeless form.

Sylar growled, "You're lucky." To Chris who was watching the scenes. He kneeled next to Bennet and pulled him forward. "He's alive."

"Dammit." Chris grunted, checking the bullets in the gun. "I have four more."

Mrs. Bennet was hugging Claire's body; Zach was leaning against the wall hoping Claire would regenerate. Lyle was sitting near his father with his head in his hands and Mr. Bennet was leaning against the wall knowing what came next. Zach looked from Sylar to Chris, and then to Mrs. Bennet. She looked back at him, teary-eyed. He nodded at her and jumped to his feet. _If I can get far enough away, I can call the cops and try and help them…_He thought, not really thinking it through enough.

Zach jumped to his feet and made a break for the door. Sylar's head jerked towards him and before he even knew what he did, he jumped the kitchen counter and ran after Zach. Zach grabbed the doorknob and unlocked the lock. But before he could pull the door open, Sylar's weight came down on him. No one else took much notice to this, as Claire started moving.

Sandra's eyes grew wide. He daughter simply tossed a bullet to the floor. Sandra looked at Claire's back, and then to her face and exclaimed "You were dead! How did you do this?!"

"What… the… hell?" Lyle gasped, staring at his sister. Mr. Bennet wasn't looking at anyone. He held onto his shoulder.

"Thank you God! Thank you!" Sandra cried. "You're a miracle."

"I'm no miracle mom." Claire replied as Sylar re-entered the room dragging Zach by his hood.

"You were dead. Anyone that returns from the dead is a miracle!" Sandra continued, holding onto her daughter.

"Bring them into the bedroom." Chris ordered as he walked towards Claire and her mom.

Chris pulled Claire from her mother's grasp. Sandra stood up and gritted her teeth, eyeing Chris. Then from behind her, Sylar pulled her into the bedroom with Lyle and Mr. Bennet.

Sylar wrapped the roll of duct-tape around Claire's wrists, making sure that she couldn't move, then he taped Zach's hands together and added some extra pieces here and there. He made sure they couldn't run, and then walked into the bedroom. "I think we'd better just kill them, play time is over."

"I agree." Chris replied.

**Primatech Paper**

**Odessa, Texas**

"What is he doing?" Eden whispered to the Haitian as they both watched Peter draw on a paper pad. The Haitian simply shrugged and walked over to Peter. He looked at him and saw his pupils were white. Then before his eyes, they returned to normal. "Peter? Are you ok?" Eden asked, walking over to him.

Peter put the pad of paper down and grabbed his temples. He looked up and saw Eden holding onto the paper. She then looked at him. She turned the paper around for him to see. It showed two figures on a couch and another figure pointing a gun at a fourth figure who wore horn-rimmed glasses.

"What is this?" Eden asked Peter of his poorly drawn scene.

"I don't know." Peter replied. "Back in New York, theres a guy who paints to future."

"Isaac." Eden said, with a grin, "Wait? This is his power? If it is, then these people are in trouble."

The Haitian was way ahead of them, he opened his mouth and said "Mr. Bennet."

"You can talk?" Eden asked, her mouth dropping open.

"No time. Mr. Bennet is in trouble." He said, running for the door with them close behind. "Come on, we need all the help we can get!"

Peter was the first up to follow the Haitian without questions, the Eden ran behind him. The Haitian grabbed the keys to a Primatech delivery van and ten minutes later they pulled into the neighborhood. The Haitian parked the van in the front and got out, he made sure they kept quiet. Peter flipped his hair back and followed. The Haitian put his finger to his lips and walked around to the back of the van. He opened the doors and then pulled up a small compartment in the floor revealing five guns each fit into their own little holder. He took out three and a magazine for each and he passed one to each of them.

"What is going on?" Eden asked.

"I know what's happening, it's Chris Hurley, the hunter, Thompson hired him a while back because he is Claire's biological half brother. He had already manifested so Thompson let him on the team, he was seventeen at the time but Thompson knew he would be put to no other use. Something was never right about him and a few days back, I heard him on the phone, he said something about killing off the source of his misery. That would be Mr. Bennet. Now, we need to go in there before this ends badly."

"Wait… the guy who's trying to kill Bennet is Claire's brother?" Peter asked, with a confused look on his face.

"Basically, yes." The Haitian told him, and he quietly closed up the back of the van, "Let's go."

----

"I'm sorry Zach." Claire said faintly as she and Zach sat on the sofa inside, waiting for what came next, from the sound of it, Chris and Sylar were arguing about who they would kill first.

"You don't have to be." Zach replied. "You did what I would have done."

"I hope so…" Claire muttered, then she thought of something, "There's still a way to save us all."

"Like what?"

"You can set things on fire right?"

"With a lighter, yes." Zach told her.

"No, with your mind, you've done it before, if you can burn your way through the tape, then you and me can get help." Claire thought it was a good idea, she just hoped Zach agreed…

"I can't control it, I've only done it once or twice." Zach reminded Claire.

"Well you better try, this is our last shot." Claire gave him a look that no one could refuse. Zach concentrated on the tape for a moment, he closed his eyes and waited to see if anything would happen, and then he looked back at Claire. Then he looked at the back door and saw The Haitian walk in silently, followed by Peter.

The Haitian told her to be quiet and motioned Peter to free them. He pointed to the bedroom door and Claire nodded. Chris heard the door open though and returned to the living room. He saw the new arrivals and shouted for Sylar. Peter cut the tape off Claire and Zach fast, they pulled the rest off.

"Get out of here." Peter hissed, but Claire shook her head.

"I'm tired of running." She said confidently and Zach nodded.

Chris gripped the gun pointed at the Haitian, but turned it to Peter. He didn't know what to do. Sylar came out from the bedroom and growled at the sight of Peter.

"Miss me?" He snarled, stepping up to Peter, "I bet you thought you did well, saving the cheerleader over here. That means nothing now."

"Bastard." Peter spat.

"Is that all you can say?" Sylar asked, an insane grin creeping across his face. He put his hand out and Peter flew into the wall behind him. Claire jumped up and stood, facing Sylar. "What are you going to do?" Sylar asked her next, "Going to try and save the day?" Sylar came closer to her, his hand still out. Claire didn't even blink.

"Claire, get out of here." The Haitian told her, he kept his gun pointed at Chris who wasn't sure what to do.

Sylar looked back at him, and then to Zach, and then back to Claire. Sylar took in the silence, hearing his own heartbeat and then he made up his mind. He sliced Claire's forehead, making her scream, not because of pain, but because of the blood dripping down. But the cut ended as soon as it began, the front door smashed open and Eden fired off a magazine all at Sylar. Nobody said a word.

**I'm sorry, I had to make Claire get shot, it adds a lot of drama. Hehe, enjoy!**


	18. Playing the Heroes

_**We're nearing the end, my friends. Here's chapter 18… **_

**The Bennet House**

**Odessa, Texas**

Chris, Eden, Peter, The Haitian, Claire, and Zach all stared wide-eyed at the bullets suspended in mid air. Sylar looked back at the bullets, then back to Claire, where the cut had healed up. The bullets fell to the ground and no one made a move.

"You can't kill me that easily." Sylar growled, impressed with himself. Just then Peter took his gun and pistol-whipped Sylar, in the back of the head. Sylar fell forward into Claire, who collapsed under his weight. Claire squirmed free and backed away. Then Chris took his turn to be the… hero? Well the hero for Sylar.

Chris gripped the gun and pointed it at each of them. "No one move." He choked. Then he made his way over to Sylar.

"Chris, stop it." The Haitian told him, holding his own gun. "You don't know what you're doing."

"Drop your guns. All of you." Chris shouted, his voice shaking. He reached out for Zach and grabbed him and held the gun to his head. "Drop your guns."

"Do what he says!" Claire yelled, scrambling to her feet.

"Don't you move." Chris shouted to her then, making her back up. Chris held Zach and turned around, "Drop your damn gun."

"Chris, let him go, we can sort this out." Mr. Bennet told him, limping into the room.

"No, Bennet, you know why? Because you killed my mom, don't think I don't know about it. You and that… that Haitian, you did—" Chris was cut off by Mr. Bennet.

"We did what was necessary." Mr. Bennet said loudly. Claire stared in disbelief to all of them.

"You killed his mom?" Claire asked through gritted teeth, to her father that was now standing nearby her.

"Claire, stay out of this." Mr. Bennet said firmly. "His mother was not a good person, she used her powers for the wrong thing. We needed to kill her, she… she was like him." He pointed to where Sylar had been seconds ago. They all looked and saw no one. Everyone looked around for Sylar, suddenly he showed up behind Claire and was gone with her. "CLAIRE!" Mr. Bennet shouted.

Sylar reappeared upstairs, in Claire's bedroom; he threw her to the floor and closed the door. He locked it quietly and looked down at her.

"What are you going to do?" Claire asked him, putting on a brave face.

"I'm gonna kill you." Sylar replied, with a grin.

----

"Looks like your daughter's done." Chris said with a slight hint of remorse. He suddenly let out a cry of pain and looked at his arm, there were burns in the shape of hands, he threw Zach down and winced. Zach looked up at him, pleased with himself, then he looked around for signs of Claire. Chris recovered from the burns and got back on track, though still cradling his left arm. "Now kick over your weapons."

Peter, Eden, and The Haitian did so.

"Now take a seat and be ready for your turns."

"Chris, please." Mr. Bennet asked, "You don't get why we killed her, she needed to be stopped, don't follow in her footsteps, you can do good Chris."

"I wasn't doing any good working for you, bastard." Chris retorted.

"If you save Claire, we can forget about this. Please Chris, you have to listen to me." Mr. Bennet said, his voice shaking.

Then they heard screams coming from up the stairs. Chris looked up the stairs, then back at the couch, where Peter was gone.

----

Sylar sliced through Claire's forehead, pouring blood down her face but he was cut short. Peter appeared in a blink and turned around to where Sylar and Claire were. Peter grabbed Sylar around the neck and wrestled him off of Claire, the two fell into the door. Peter slammed Sylar into the floor and grabbed onto his neck, to hold him off.

"Run, Claire." He panted as Sylar threw him off. Sylar jumped up and grabbed Claire by the ankle as she went to go out into the hall. He pulled her back into the room and the door slammed. Sylar pinned her to the floor and tried to get to her brain again but Peter used Sylar's telekinesis to send him up and into the ceiling. He whipped the door open and Claire ran for it with Peter close by. Sylar hit the floor and jumped to follow them. Peter turned to look back and Sylar came down on him.

"Looks like I'm gonna get more than one power today." Sylar breathed right into Peter's face looking sick.

Claire dashed down the stairs, but saw Peter get tackled. She looked from the four people on the couch, to Peter who was trying to fight off Sylar. She turned and ran back up the stairs. She grabbed onto Sylar's neck and tried to pull him off of Peter. With the distraction, Peter got free and back away. Sylar hit Claire in the face, breaking her nose and slamming her into the wall. Peter kicked Sylar in the gut and sent him flying over the balcony that was railing-less due to the earlier attacks.

Chris jumped back as Sylar came crashing down. Eden jumped back and took a dive for the gun. The Haitian grabbed Mr. Bennet by the shoulders and hissed: "Take your family and run, we'll protect Claire. Just go."

"I'm not leaving Claire." Mr. Bennet protested.

"Yes you are." The Haitian shouted, and he pushed Mr. Bennet towards the bedroom. "Eden, take them to the Company, keep them safe."

Eden nodded and helped Bennet up.

"Keep Claire safe." Mr. Bennet winced and followed Eden back to the bedroom.

Claire recovered from her injuries and raced to the edge of the stairs to watch what was happening. Peter jumped down into the living room and grabbed Sylar by the front of his jacket. His hands suddenly caught on fire and burned through Sylar's jacket. Sylar looked down at that and then to Zach and then grabbed Peter by the shirt. He sent him flying back towards the kitchen. Claire jumped down with Zach and pulled him close to her.

Peter lay still in the kitchen for a few minutes, he grabbed onto his head and stared ahead of him, his eyes turned fully white and he winced, shutting them tight. Sylar stood up and looked around. The Haitian was standing nearby, looking pissed; Zach and Claire were huddled together by the stairs; Peter was in the kitchen holding onto his head; Chris was standing there near Sylar.

"Its time to end this." Chris panted, not sure of himself.

"I agree." Sylar replied, he turned to Claire and held his hand out. Claire suddenly flew from Zach to the wall where he pinned her with his mind. "It's time to serve your purpose Claire. It was nice meeting you."

Sylar walked slowly towards her when suddenly he caught on fire. Zach held his own hand out and glared at Sylar. "If you want her, you go through me first."

_**A little short but I'm working on it ;) **_


	19. Being the Heroes

**_  
Lets hope this works now...  
_**

**_Thanks for your ever-so lovely reviews! Here we go, I'm aiming for 22 chapters in all, like a normal season, maybe 23 if chapter 22 gets too big!_**

**The Bennet Residence**

**Too many people to list… I can't remember right now…**

"Cute." Sylar snarled at Zach who was standing between him and Claire, who was pinned to the wall by an invisible force. Suddenly Zach flew to the side and into a table by the front door. He crashed through the wood and hit the wall. Sylar approached Claire slowly and in a deep voice, unlike his own at all, he said "Hello."

Claire tried to push off the wall but it was almost as if someone glued her back to it. Peter held onto his head and his vision blurred. He thought how he could save the day. _I need to help Claire… My head is killing me… I could slip away and call the cops… That mind-reading cop… _Peter grabbed a fist-full of his hair and the minds of the people around him exploded in thought.

_Zach run… all of you run… dammit… he's gonna kill me._

_One step closer… I'm gonna kill her right here!_

_Je peux l'eteindre. Si je peux devenir assez étroit sans bruit..._

_My arm… dammit… I need to help Claire. _

Peter's vision re-focused. He shook his head and moved his hair behind his ear. The Haitian approached Sylar with his hand up. Sylar whirled around and cursed. He used his mind to send The Haitian flying into the kitchen. The Haitian got up again. Sylar turned around and looked at him.

"You got a power too?" He asked, a grin spreading across his face.

The Haitian said nothing. He threw a punch that Sylar caught. He twisted the man's fist with no effect. The Haitian jerked his hand free and kneed Sylar in the stomach. He threw him to the wooden floor and held him in place by his neck. Sylar squinted his eyes and The Haitian flew from him and into the ceiling. Sylar pushed himself up and raised the Haitian into the air. He started the cut but was stopped by Zach who grabbed him around the back of the neck. He left burn marks on Sylar's neck.

Sylar growled in pain and threw Zach off and into the front door. Sylar looked between the two. He lost focus on Claire who fell down onto the floor. She grabbed the metal lamp from the table and yanked the cord out. Sylar grabbed Zach's neck and pressed him to the door. Claire took a swing with the lamp and hit Sylar in the back of the head.

Sylar fell forward and Zach dodged him as he fell. He smiled at Claire who was quite proud of herself. Sylar recovered fast though and used the telekinesis to send them all in different directions. Claire hit the kitchen counter. Zach landed fourteen stairs up and the Haitian hit the couch. Claire looked over at Peter. He appeared to be in pain. She took a deep breath.

"Don't worry." She hissed and ran back into the other room to try and help save the day again. Zach was knocked out on the stairs from the impact to his head. The Haitian hadn't yet gotten up.

Before Claire had a chance to move, she was already pinned to the wall near the stairs. Sylar came towards her faster than last time. He put his finger in position and began the incision. Claire closed her eyes tightly as the blood came down onto her already blood stained face. She prepared herself for death, already having died it couldn't be that different.

When Claire was expecting the final second of her life… the cutting stopped. Claire was released from the wall and she hit the floor. The Haitian stood over Sylar's limp form.

"How'd you do that?" Claire breathed as she felt her head. She got to her feet and pushed her hair back.

"Never mind that Claire." The Haitian replied, brushing off her question. "We need to find Chris and take them to the Company."

Claire walked over to the kitchen sink and dipped her head into it. She washed the blood off of her face and out of her eyes so she could see straight again. Zach climbed down the stairs and felt his own head. He joined Claire in the kitchen. The Haitian walked down the hall towards the door. Peter pulled himself up and shouted "Watch out!"

The door busted open and the barrel of the gun collided with the Haitian's chest. Chris pistol whipped The Haitian and grabbed him by the shirt.

He slammed him into the beam near the dining room and shouted in his face "Where'd they go!?"

The Haitian remained silent and stared at Chris.

Claire heard that and she pushed her damp hair back. She looked towards the hall and then into the living room where Sylar was knocked out. Then her eyes went for the guns lying on the rug. She slowly picked one up. Never having held a gun, let alone used a gun, she studied it for a second. She decided she would wing it. Pulling the trigger was something everyone knew.

Claire walked towards the hall with the gun held tightly between both hands. She raised it at Chris who didn't realize she was there yet. She raised it to his head and pulled the trigger. _Click. _

Chris turned around fast and saw her. He raised his gun to the Haitian's head and gritted his teeth. Claire panicked, she'd seen 24 a few times too know what happened next. She then remembered she had to pull the top back, quickly and strictly out of panic, pulled the top back and aimed it at him, then she pulled the trigger. The Haitian ducked down quickly and the bullet lodged itself in the wall behind where he just was. Chris was nowhere to be seen. Instead, there was a small dog sitting on the floor and a gun next to it.

Claire stared wide-eyed at the puppy, it didn't fit at all. The dog looked at her and then took off as fast as its little legs would carry it. The dog ran around the corner and out of sight.

"Hey!!" Peter shouted, obviously recovered. Chris dashed out the front door and down to his car. The Haitian followed with Claire not too far back.

Chris fished around in her pocket for the keys, when he found them he jammed them into the ignition.

Peter got down to the driveway in time to see Chris's car starting. He ran down to Mrs. Bennet's car. It was locked. He quickly punched the window and stuck a bloody hand in and opened it.

Then Peter jumped in the front seat. With a spark of light the car started. Claire jumped in the passenger seat.

"What are you doing?" Peter asked.

"I'm going with you." She replied, giving him a stern look.

"No your—"

"There's no time!" Claire cried, slamming her door. Peter backed the car out and drove off after Chris.

The Haitian watched the car drive off, "Dammit. Claire." He muttered and then turned back for the house. Zach ran out of the house and looked around.

"Where are they?" He called to the Haitian.

"They went after Chris. Help me get Sylar into the van."

"Alright." Zach nodded and looked down the road, then he followed The Haitian.

_**Building towards a better ending…**_


	20. The Big Bang

_**Chapter 20, the Big Bang chapter :D Thanks for the reviews. Hopefully this chapter works unlike chapter 19… dumb 19…**_

**The Bennet Home**

**Zach, The Haitian, and Sylar**

Zach and the Haitian returned through the front door and kneeled near Sylar's limp form. The Haitian was deep in thought as he grabbed Sylar's ankles and directed Zach to grab his arms. Peter was exposed to who knows how many abilities, he's very unstable, but… Claire would be fine. She has regeneration… but what about the city of Odessa… or where ever it would happen?

They carried Sylar out to the van and hoisted him onto the table in the back, then the Haitian pulled the black straps over Sylar to make sure he was not going anywhere.

"So what's going to happen next?" Zach asked, wondering where Claire was and whether or not she was ok.

"We need to bring him to the Company and keep him there, the Bennet's should be there already with Eden, you're going to stay there, then I need to go after Chris and make sure Claire and Peter are safe." The Haitian told him, "Get in."

They climbed into the van and drove west towards the Company.

----

**The Highway, Nearing City Limits**

**Peter and Claire**

The car was silent as Peter followed Chris east through a small part of town. Claire was silent too, keeping an eye on Chris. She only spoke to say "left" or "he's gonna try and turn there."

Peter's vision started to blur as he closed his eyes, then he opened them to when Claire told him Chris was turning. He made a sharp right, making the tires screech against the asphalt. Claire looked over at him and saw that he was sweating. She gritted her teeth and pointed as Chris made his way onto the highway. Peter turned the car and hopped onto the exit to the highway.

"Are you ok?" Claire finally asked.

"You shouldn't have come." Peter growled, wiping sweat from his eyes.

"I'm gonna be fine." Claire replied, "He swerved."

"You don't know that." Peter told her.

"Peter, I can re-grow my kidney if necessary." Claire said with a slight smile, thinking of "Miracle Grow."

"That's not what I mean." Peter sighed, "There's something wrong with me."

"What?" Claire asked; her voice filled with worry.

"It's these powers, Sylar and that other guy had a lot and then that Haitian's powers. They're making me feel overloaded and when… never mind."

"What?"

"Nothing; where'd he go?" Peter brushed off the subject quickly, thinking _I'll be ok, no need to worry Claire… _

Claire looked ahead and saw Chris's maroon Honda ahead, she simply pointed and didn't say a word. There was something seriously wrong with Peter and she knew it. She looked at a road sign for the exit Lucas Road and thought about what could be wrong with him. Then she thought about what would happen when they caught up with Chris. She looked over at Peter who was focused on the road.

"Ok, Claire, we're too close to Chris now. I'm gonna ram him and I know you'll be fine, so prepare for it." Peter said, breaking the silence.

"Ok." Claire replied with a nod.

Chris's car was to the left of them; he saw them and tried to speed up. Peter moved the car to the left and hit Chris's car. Chris gritted his teeth and looked over to them. Then he swerved and hit back. Peter stepped on the gas to get farther ahead and then he slowed it down so Chris's car hit the back of their car. Claire looked out the back window at Chris who pulled his car ahead. Peter hit back and Chris's Honda's bumper fell off with a loud thud.

"Dammit." Chris cursed in the driver's seat. "Time to finish this and get those powers."

Chris pulled the maroon car back some and slammed the gas. He swerved over two lanes and hit Peter and Claire with all the strength his little vehicle could muster. Sandra Bennet's small car skidded harshly to the right; it slid off the highway and down a small hill. It turned and rolled down the grass until a tree stopped it.

----

**Primatech Paper**

**Zach, The Haitian, and Sylar**

Nearly fifteen miles away the in the other direction, Zach and the Haitian pulled into the back parking lot of Primatech. The Haitian went up to the gate and talked to someone inside for a few seconds. Zach got out and was lead in by a tall man with security guard uniform on. They went through a tall door and down a flight of steps, and then the guard pressed in a code. A Tall garage door opened up and Zach was brought into a nicely kept room that reminded him of the teacher's lounge at Union Wells High that he always liked to break into.

"Oh, Zachary, I'm so glad you're ok." Sandra Bennet's voice rang from the other side of the room.

"Where's Claire?" Lyle asked, looking around to see who came next.

"She went with Peter." Zach replied, taking a seat near them and Mr. Muggles.

Mr. Bennet joined the Haitian out front. They pulled Sylar out of the back and carried him into the building. The stretcher was set down on its wheels and rolled down a short white hall. A man in a lab coat joined them and helped bring Sylar into the holding cell. The Haitian helped put Sylar onto the cement block in the middle. Then he rejoined Mr. Bennet.

"Where's Chris?" Mr. Bennet questioned.

"Chris got away but Peter went after him." The Haitian replied.

"Zachary and Claire?"

"Well… Zach is here, but Claire went with Peter."

"You let Claire go with Peter?" Mr. Bennet's voice rose.

"No, you see, it happened really fast, Chris ran and then Peter grabbed the other car and then Claire went with him." The Haitian defended, although he didn't do a good job.

"If she gets hurt, this is going to be on you. Peter is unstable; he's a ticking time bomb." Mr. Bennet growled and then turned to leave the outer room of the cell.

The Haitian took and deep breath. He leaned on the wall and thought: _If that girl dies it will be all my fault… then again, how could she die? She's indestructible. Then again… _He rubbed his hand over his chin and looked over at Sylar. He was still out but slowly he was waking up. The Haitian turned and left the room to follow Mr. Bennet back to Zach and his family.

----

**Now Off the Highway**

**Chris, Claire, and Peter**

Claire closed her eyes tightly and felt the back of her head. There was a small bump that was vanishing. A small cut on her forehead was also going away. She pushed the airbag away from her. She opened her eyes and looked over to Peter. He pushed the airbag out of his face and opened the car door. Fragments of glass from the already-smashed window fell onto the grass. Peter climbed out of the car and waited for his cuts to heal, most of them did heal, but they still left little marks that Peter didn't notice. He brushed his sweaty hair out of his face and then he looked over towards Claire.

"You alright?" He asked, wiping sweat from his face and neck.

"You know it." She answered as she tried to open the door.

Chris opened his car door and hopped out. He slammed the door and grabbed a crowbar from the back seat. _This is it. It's over. I'm going to get their powers and that's it. Then I leave and head somewhere nice. They won't be able to find me. _Chris grinned at this thought and stepped down the grassy incline towards Claire and Peter. Claire turned and saw Chris. Peter did too, but not quickly enough. Chris took a swing at Peter with the crowbar and hit him in the back of the head.

Peter fell forward into the smashed up bumper of the car. He cried out in pain and then fell backwards onto the grass. Chris slammed Claire onto the trunk of the car. Her face hit the metal of the car as Chris's scarred hand squeezed the back of her neck.

"Do you think you're escaping this time Claire?" Chris asked with a sick and insane tone to his voice.

Claire didn't reply. She closed her eyes and focused on kicking Chris right where it hurts.

Chris held the crowbar in his right hand and thought to himself _Dammit. I don't have a knife so how the hell will this work? _He tapped the crowbar on the trunk and increased his grip on Claire. Then he decided to distract her so he had time to find something sharp.

"You know Claire. I am having so much fun with this. I think after I kill you… I'll kill your whole family. I'll kill Peter and your friend Zach… then I'll free Sylar and—"

This was where Claire tuned him out; she wasn't interested in his threats. He wouldn't be able to do that. _Why the hell isn't Peter getting up? _She thought. _He has my power, he should be up by now…_ Her eyes darted back towards where Chris was still trying to torture her then up towards Chris's car. She tried to see Peter but all she saw was his foot lying limp on the ground.

"…yeah, maybe I'll kill your family in front of you. That'll be—" Chris's threats were cut off by his sudden scream of pain. Claire shoved him off of her and she dove for Peter.

"Peter wake up!" She shouted, shaking him. She turned him over to see a trail of blood coming from his nose. _He's not healing. _She thought and she grabbed him under the arms. _Come on Peter…_ Claire started to pull him up the incline, but his limp form was too heavy for her small form. Chris growled and, still holding his crotch, he grabbed Claire by her hair and threw her against the tree.

"You're gonna die and you're gonna die now." He snarled without thinking at all.

Peter's body twitched and his eyes opened. He grabbed onto his head and growled in pain. He slowly sat up and saw Claire slammed against the tree with Chris standing over her. Peter got to his feet, his body shaking, and he hit Chris in the back of the head. The crowbar fell with a thump to the ground and Chris fell against Claire. Claire pushed him off and ran over to Claire.

"Claire. There's no time." Peter panted, sweat dripping into his eyes, "Something is happening to me. You need to get that car and get as far away from here as possible."

"But what about you?" She asked, now in a panic.

"You did this last time, Claire, don't worry about me. I'm gonna kill this son of a bitch. You need to get away!"

"But Peter—"

"GO!"

Claire looked at him and then back at the car, then she ran up to it. She jumped into the driver's seat and started the engine. Then she drove it back onto the high way and back towards where they had come from.

Chris got to his feet and tackled Peter to the ground. "You let her get away!" He roared as he punched Peter.

"What do you think I was going to do?" Peter snarled in reply.

Peter took the punches at first because his body was growing weaker and weaker. Then he pushed Chris off of him. Chris's hand turned into a tiger's paw and clawed Peter across the face. Peter growled in pain and then remembered the powers he had. He used the telekinesis to send Chris flying towards a small stream below.

Claire drove far down the highway, she hadn't gone too far yet, half a mile she'd say. She slammed her hand against the wheel. "I need to go back." She said to herself, "Peter has done this before and all it got him was arrested. This time I have to help him out. But then again, he has all my powers, what I need to do is go back to the Paper Factory… and get my dad's men." She nodded to herself and sped the car up towards Primatech.

Chris punched Peter in the gut and then in the mouth near where he had scratched him. Peter pushed him off and back into the water. He gasped for air and fell to the ground. Chris got up out of the water and grabbed the crowbar. He strode over to Peter, holding it threateningly. Peter looked up and tried to use the telekinesis again but it just barely worked and gave him a splitting pain him his head.

Peter grabbed his head and backed up. Chris laughed and pulled Peter to his feet by his jacket.

"You know Pete; I'm going to enjoy this power." Chris said to him, oblivious to the fact that Peter's eyes turned white.

"You won't." Peter choked, "You'll never get it."

"And why's that?" Chris asked with a sneer.

"Because I'm about to lose it." Peter answered through gritted teeth, a mixture of blood and sweat running down his face.

"What?" Chris questioned, tilting his head. Peter pulled out of his grip and faced him.

Peter threw a punch at Chris, but Chris caught it, he forced Peter's arm behind his back and pushed his head into a tree. Chris raised the crowbar over his head. The metal of the tool connected with Peter's head, breaking the skin. It came back down and hit again. Peter's blood splattered in Chris's face, but Chris didn't care. He backed up, and tossed the crowbar aside. Then he pulled Peter's head back and saw that his eyes were glowing.

Chris stepped back, wide-eyed. Peter fell to the ground and two words escaped his bloody lips "_It's happening_."

Chris backed up and saw as Peter's hands started glowing. Peter's ears filled with a high-pitched ringing sound and his head felt like it split with pain. He rose up into the air and screamed as his hair was lifted up. It felt like a hot wind suddenly blew from the ground. The scene filled with blinding white lights and then more burning wind.

Chris flew back from the impact and all went black.

Peter's insides felt like they were on fire and everything was so bright his eyes shut automatically. The white light turned orange. Everything nearby caught on fire. Peter closed his eyes. Everything around turned white-hot and that was all Peter remembered because next came the loudest noise anyone nearby heard, it was also the last for all but one. Miles around people witnessed a mushroom cloud extend into the sky. People within a half-mile of the explosion never saw anything ever again.


	21. Panic

_**Reviews make me happy:D  
**_

**Blast Site, Outside Odessa, Texas**

An eerie silence hung over the charred grounds of the outskirts of Odessa, Texas. The silence was soon broken by the sounds of sirens and tires skidding towards the blast site. The ground was black and burnt. What was left of vegetation was lying all over, like a pattern. Fragments of splintered wood lay on the destroyed earth like piles of firewood on an icy ground during winter. A low haze settled itself in over the blast site.

Fire trucks and ambulances sped in, their sirens sounding loudly. They surveyed the ground around there and saw that winds from the blast had reached that far. Hazmat trucks came in to test for radiation. The ambulances were forced to stop and the people in hazmat suits brought out Geiger Counters.

"Radiation! Move out!" A man shouted to the exposed rescue workers. The vehicles sped the opposite way to protect themselves before re-entering the site.

The hazmat workers walked along the hazy, silent, area and shook their heads. They were all speculating terrorism and other terrifying ideas. They looked around at the bodies of people that were lucky enough to escape the blast, but not lucky enough to escape the winds that followed. The people outside the level did not even know they were in danger yet.

"Set up a perimeter one mile around the damaged areas." A person in a hazmat suit shouted into a walkie-talkie.

"Copy that." The voice replied.

"Do not let anyone inside, the survivors here have been exposed to amounts of radiation, bring them all to a field area where we can try to clean them." The person then yelled.

"10-4." The response came through as.

"No one around here survived this." The person sighed to another man standing next to him.

"I don't doubt it, but we need to get the survivors outside the half mile." The man replied with a grim expression as he imagined what they would be thinking once they heard the news that they were dying.

----

A small overturned vehicle lay nearby. It suffered damages not only from being tipped over by the winds of the explosion, but it also had major dents from what it had been used for earlier. Its windshield was smashed through and a teenage girl lay just a few feet from it. The winds pushed the car off of the road and sent it into the wall of the road below. She had small cuts on her face and a large branch of wood was stuck into the side of her forehead.

A man in a hazmat suit approached her and gritted his teeth. He shook his head and thought _At least she didn't have to die of the radiation… _as if that made it better. The man kneeled by her and turned her over to look for identification. He found a cell phone but it was smashed from the accident. Defeated, he turned to go. That was one person on the list... But before he left, he reached for the stick and pulled it from her flesh, and then he dropped it to the side and whispered "Sorry." Then he walked away.

The gaping hole in Claire Bennet's forehead slowly repaired itself and closed. A web of skin made its way over the old wound and blended in with the rest of the skin. The cuts all disappeared. Claire's eyes slowly opened and her vision came into focus. She took several deep breaths of air and coughed at the taste. She pulled herself into a sitting position and felt her head.

She suddenly remembered what happened, the sound, the cloud, the rush of wind, and then getting thrown from the road. She saw the mushroom cloud rise up but that was all she did remember. She realized that something had exploded. She didn't know what, but what she did know was Peter was back there... where she had seen the cloud. Claire looked up the hill and saw a large truck, and then before she realized what she was doing, she stood up and dashed up the side of the hill. _Peter. w_as what her thoughts said over and over.

----

"We interrupt this broadcast to bring breaking news." A panicked woman stuttered on a small TV. Mrs. Bennet, Zach, and Lyle all turned to the TV to see if it had to do with the faint sound they heard a little while ago. Mr. Bennet was nowhere to be seen. "A nuclear explosion has taken place just east of Odessa Texas. Nothing has been confirmed yet but according to officials on the scene, damage reaches a half mile around the site and radiation reaches up to one mile outside the blast site. It is mandatory for all civilians to stay indoors at this time and anyone within a mile of the blast site needs to stay put due to radiation threats."

"Oh my God." Sandra breathed, her arm snaked around Lyle's shoulders.

"The death toll has not been confirmed yet but officials estimate that the numbers will be low due to the level of the explosion." The news reporter went on, "We'll now head to Reporter Dean Walker who is hovering just near the site…"

"Look at that." Zach said and pointed at the screen. The screen showed a charred, black and brown area that seemed to be a battlefield.

Sandra was speechless and shaking. Her thoughts buzzed around for a while but then settled on one thing: Claire.

"Oh my God, Claire!" She shrieked.

"Oh no." Zach gasped, sitting down on a seat in the room."Claire."

"What if she was killed in it?! Oh Claire! Where's my husband?" She raved and ran from the room, leaving Lyle and Zach to continue watching the scene on the TV, speechless.

----

"That was Peter." Mr. Bennet said quietly to the Haitian as they stood in the other room seeing this on another television. He stared solemnly at it.

"Claire was with him." The Haitian breathed.

"I know. She survived it… right? She had to…" Mr. Bennet told himself.

"Well Bennet. I see you failed at taking Peter Petrelli out." A man standing in the doorway said.

"Mr. Thompson." Mr. Bennet said in response, his voice shaking.

The man, Thompson, walked over and looked at the screen. He then looked at the two men, wearing an expression hidden rage. Thompson sat on a chair near the wall and put his head in his hands.

"Do you know what you've done?" He asked, looking up.

"Sir, I promise you, we tried to take him out, but I don't know… he…" Mr. Bennet trailed off and leaned on the wall.

"We don't know how he survived it." The Haitian finished, giving Mr. Bennet a threatening look.

"You can talk?" Thompson growled, looking over at the Haitian, he scratched his head and put that topic aside. "Do you know what this could cause? People died. People might find out about the special ones. This is a huge disaster. Speculations are flying around about terrorism! The terrorists could be them!"

"Yes sir, I understand." Mr. Bennet simply said with regret in his voice.

----

Claire hid behind the van, realizing that she cannot be seen. She made her way along the back of the van and then she looked over at the police officers blocking off news reporters a little ways back that way. She then made a run for it, going towards where she had last seen Peter. She needed to find him.

One of the people in the hazmat suits on the road ahead suddenly saw her and shouted "Hey!" He jumped up and followed Claire.

"Dammit." She growled to herself and jumped behind another hazmat vehicle.

The man caught up with her and ran around the vehicle. Claire simply took off ahead. The man followed and jumped ahead of her. He tried to block her but she dashed around him and towards where she saw fallen trees and the yellow caution tape stretched in between two more trucks. Claire ducked under the tape and two more men saw her.

"Stop, kid! There's radiation all around!!" One yelled, "It's toxic!"

Claire slowed down, not because of the man's words, but because of the sight that met her eyes. The barren destroyed land that stretched in front of her. One of the men, the one that had been chasing her, grabbed her by the arm. Claire pushed him off and then ran into the blast zone, her mind flooding with visions of Peter's dead body. Suddenly both her arms were grabbed and held tightly by the man.

"Let's go." He growled. "This is a blast site, not a playground. That was a really stupid move. Why'd you run over here?"

Claire knew Peter didn't survive, her eyes filled with tears and she told him: "My friend Peter was over here, he said to go and… and…" Her voice shook and crackled. "He was over here…" She sobbed, speaking really fast, "He said he didn't feel good… it was the abilities…"

"Calm down." The man said calmly now, "Your friend was here? What do you mean, abilities?"

"Uh…" Claire's eyes widened. The man let go of her arm and gave her a look of confusion. She backed away from him. Then she took off for the blast site again. _He has to be alive… he has my power…_

"Dammit." The man yelled, he grabbed his walkie-talkie and pressed the button, "I need help, theres a kid over here and she's been exposed to major doses of radiation and she ran into the black zone. She's in big trouble here, can I get back up?"

"10-4."

Claire dashed over to where she thought she saw the remains of a car. It wasn't that though. Tears soaked her face as speculation of what happened swarmed her mind. Did Peter do this? Does he have a bomb power? Did Chris do this? It was hopeless, she knew she wasn't going to find the area where Peter would be… _He's dead… _Suddenly she heard several footsteps behind her and she was tackled by two of the men.

"Insane." She heard one say, she knew they thought she was a psycho now, but she didn't care. Peter was dead and Odessa was destroyed.

The three men brought her back to the trucks under major watch. She was surprised they didn't put her in a straightjacket. They must think she's mental. She didn't say a word as they brought her to the front zone for decontamination. The men were very confused as they sat her down on the back of the truck. One pulled a Geiger counter out and used it to measure how much radiation she took.

"This piece of crap's broken, Stevens, grab me the other one." One of the men growled.

Claire sat there with her head in her hands on the back of the truck, the three men watching her like hawks. The man named Stevens carried over another device and the first grabbed it and turned it on. Claire thought about what he family was thinking, where were they? Where was Zach? She was jerked out of her thoughts by a loud "Oh my God."

"This thing reads no signs of radiation."

"How the hell does that work?"

"This kid ran right up to the blast site."

"You sure that thing's working?"

"Positive, it did all the reading here and for that lab we went to yesterday." Stevens confirmed, he took it in his hands and walked over to where the caution tape was, he then came back. "Works perfectly fine."

The other two men walked over to Stevens and looked at it. Claire took a deep breath and jumped down from the truck, then she ran for it, towards where the car was so she could lose them. If they found out about the power then she was done.

"We still need to clean her off and take her to a clean area, this is too weird." One of the men looked up "Dammit she ran off again!!!"

"Stop her!" Stevens called to a police officer standing near the caution tape. "She's a danger to everyone not in a suit."

The Officer nodded and ran after Claire and tried to grab her. He slid down the hill after her. Claire tried to jump the wall but she fell. Then she tried to go for the other side.

"Hey! Stop kid, you can't leave this area!" The Officer growled, he grabbed her around the neck and held her in a choke hold.

"Get off." She snarled.

"No." He replied trying to hold her down.

"I'm ok, theres nothing wrong with me, just let me go home." Claire pleaded, her eyes filling with tears again. She elbowed him in the ribs and tried to squirm loose.

"Hey! You know I could arrest you for assaulting an officer, is that what you want? No. So settle down so they can clean you off." The man barked. He brought her back to the truck and took out his handcuffs. He hooked one to her right wrist, and the other to the truck. "There."

"Alright kid. What's your problem?" Stevens asked, standing in front of Claire.

"What do you want?" Claire asked quietly admitting defeat.

"We just want to run tests to figure out why you weren't exposed to radiation and decontaminate you just in case." Stevens told her in a kind voice. "Its not that big of a deal… unless you're hiding something…"

_Lovely… they might figure out about my ability. _Claire thought to herself, hanging her head. _Why did Peter have to do that? He made me go, of course he did, he always had to be the hero. Back at school and now this. He has to be alive... and I have to get out of here. _


	22. Hiatus Note

Sorry guys I haven't had the time lately to write the final chapter and I'm behind schedule. But believe me, it'll be up soon. I've got a basic idea down for a sequel now I need to become a hero and create more time in which to write it. There is math class… Anyway, as you can see my new name is Sylar so just know it's me. In the mean time check out Magnolia, awesome fic, I've been reading that one lately. So, the last chapter will be up, I'm not sure when but bare with me, a little hiatus.


	23. The Beginning, Part 1

_**The final chapter turned out to be ten pages long, so I split it in half, you know. So, thanks for baring with me and the hiatus. **_

**Primatech Paper, Odessa, Texas**

**Lyle Bennet, Sandra Bennet, Zach, and Mr. Muggles.**

A reporter dressed in protective clothing came stepped on to the muted TV screen with his channel 5 microphone in hand. He began to speak, but no sound reached the ears of Zach, Lyle, and Sandra as they all sat together in the familiar break room of Primatech. Zach looked over at the screen and noticed the familiar blonde girl behind the man. Zach grabbed the remote and turned the sound up.

"… in other news following the deadly bomb that exploded near Odessa, Texas, there seems to be a super girl among us." The reporter moved to the left and focused the camera at the truck which Claire was still handcuffed to the truck. "We haven't confirmed her name yet, but the girl seated behind me reportedly ran right into the blast site and took in massive doses of radiation, yet, she has no signs of it anywhere on her. One man claims to have seen her dead minutes before the act. We're now going back to the studio where a nuclear specialist joins—"

Zach muted the TV as the reporter kept babbling. He looked over at Claire's mother and breathed "She's ok."

Sandra, who was speechless, she moved her hand from near to her mouth and smiled. Lyle grinned too, thinking that having a freak sister was quite cool. Suddenly Sandra pulled Lyle and Zach into a hug. Mr. Muggles let out a happy bark.

"We need to go get her. Where's my husband?" Sandra asked, "Yeah Mr. Muggles! Claire's ok!"

---

Thompson stared at the TV screen in front of him looking as if he just found a buried treasure. He took the remote and set it down on the small, round table next to him. Then he turned and left the room. Mr. Bennet was chatting with the Haitian in the hallway.

"So, Bennet, when did you plan on telling me Claire manifested?" He shot at Mr. Bennet who was taken off guard as the sudden attack. The Haitian stepped back.

"Um, Mr. Thompson, may I ask you what you mean?" Mr. Bennet replied, trying to play it cool.

"You know what I mean Bennet. Your daughter is on TV. She seemed to miraculously survive the bomb and the radiation from it. Care to explain?" Thompson said casually suppressing his rage.

"Thompson… you know that I was going to bring her in… I—"

"You got attached. The reason I chose you for the job was because you were the type of man that wouldn't get attached. Comfortable with morally grey." Thompson folded his arms and the look on his face softened into a slight smirk.

"I am the one for the job. I never got attached; I'm still going to do what's asked with her." Mr. Bennet defended, trying to pretend like he was the same man as he was fifteen years before.

"Then do you know what you're going to do?"

"What?"

"You're going to pick her up from the blast site, and you're going to bring her back here. Then we're going to need extensive clean up for this mess."

"Bring Claire back? How do I get her away from them? Do they know….?"

"The report said 'Super Girl among us.'"

"That's not good." Mr. Bennet sighed, and leaned against the wall. "We'll fix this."

"We'd better." Thompson spat, "Now you're going to pick up the girl. Daddy days are far over." With that Thompson stormed back down the hall and into another room, most likely Sylar's cell.

---

The deal of transporting a potentially radiation victim was far from what Stevens wanted to handle. He knew there was nothing wrong with the girl, so why the big deal? She was quite abnormal because she was not dead. She should be dead, and after the trouble she'd put him and his team through, he preferred her dead. They went off the chase the media away claiming the radiation damages could still affect them through the protective suits. So it became his job to take her to the tent they'd set up to clean off victims and such. They put up an extra area to test Claire alone. Since she put up such a fight before, she needed to be secure the whole time. They did not want to risk her running off when she proved to be a worthy research subject for labs all over.

So here he was, unlocking the chain holding Claire's right wrist to the back of the truck. He helped her down from the spot, not saying a word, and then he lead her down a long path and towards where the tents were set up. Large florescent lights were set up due to the darkness. Claire looked around at the tents and at the several men walking around busy with things they had to do. As Stevens lead Claire towards the tent, they all stopped to look at her.

Claire wanted to run and hide, but she couldn't. She wished that she had never opted to go with Peter. Better yet, she wished that she and Zach had run away the second they got the idea.

"Over there." Stevens told her and she obeyed, "On the table."

Claire hoisted herself up onto the cold metal table. Stevens came over and held up the handcuffs. "Don't try to run away this time. Got it?" He attached them to his belt and sat down on a bench near the door to the tent.

Claire looked around the tent, there were interesting looking tools on a table across from her and then there was a door exiting to another tent, and then there was the door Stevens was near. There was a small closet set up opposite Stevens and the door. She feared what the tools would be used on the most. She shivered a little as the cold night air finally caught up to her. Stevens stood up and pulled a blanket from the closet and wrapped it around her shoulders.

"Thanks." Claire told her, with a slight smile.

"No problem." He replied. He looked towards each door and then pulled his helmet off. "We're in a secure enough area now. That thing makes me sweat."

Claire grinned at the face that appeared from the helmet. He had messy dark brown hair that fell over his ears and piercing light brown eyes. His face was long and slender and didn't seem to fit his hair. His voice didn't fit either. Claire was expecting a man in his forties to appear. He looked to be around twenty-six maybe younger.

"Wow." Claire let slip out, but she quickly covered it up with a "So… when's the testing guy coming in?"

He gave her a funny look and then said "I have no clue."

Claire looked down and sighed, Stevens seemed nice… maybe if she told him about her ability he'd let her go… or maybe he'd keep her there longer. This was tough but she couldn't let anyone find out about this… she was already a testing item; she didn't want things to get any worse.

"Hey… uh…" Claire trailed off, not knowing what to call him.

"Jake… call me Jake."

"Ok… um… Jake, if I told you how I survived the radiation… would you please let me go home?" She asked, putting on her most innocent face.

"It depends." He replied with a stern look on his face.

"If these people find out what I can do… they'll be testing me and testing me… then the guy who… is after me… might find me. Please, let me leave… tell them I ran off again… anything."

"What can you do?" Jake Stevens asked now, leaning on the table.

"I can heal." Claire muttered.

"Seriously?" Stevens questioned. "You're kidding? How?"

"I don't know but if—" She was cut off by the arrival of a middle aged man holding a syringe.

"Sit still. This wont hurt." He mumbled. Claire's eyes shot to Stevens. The needle pierced her skin and began to take blood. Jake looked back and suddenly grabbed the man around the throat. "Excuse me! Hey!"

Claire ripped the needle from her skin and dropped it, and then she ran for the entrance of the tent. Stevens wrestled the man to the ground and took the handcuffs. He cuffed the man's wrist to the table leg and then dashed to Claire. He pointed out the door and she ran, the ground was empty as of now. Stevens followed. Then a man came from a tent and saw.

"HEY! THE GIRL'S RUNNING OFF AGAIN!!" He roared for all to hear.

Stevens and Claire got into a clearing of trees. They rushed down the small path, over fallen trees, and whatever else got in their way. Footsteps flooded the path behind them. Claire cursed under her breath. Then Stevens stopped.

"Keep running!" He called.

The men following skidded to halts as Stevens blocked them. "You want her, you go through me." He shouted loud enough for Claire to hear.

Claire grinned, it wasn't the first time today she heard a guy say that for her. She thought of Zach and where he might be right now… then her dad… Suddenly headlights flashed in her eyes. She instinctively covered her face and stopped running. Mr. Bennet stopped the car, seeing Claire in his headlights. He jumped out of the vehicle and grabbed her in his arms.

"Are you okay, Claire-Bear?" He asked in a kind voice.

"I'm fine Dad… I'm so glad to see you." She grabbed onto him and he winced when she hit his bandaged gunshot wound. "It was so horrible. Peter… he's dead and Chris… I think he's dead too. They got me and they tried to test me but this guy… Jake… he helped get me out of there. Dad. Peter… He's dead. Oh God…" She dissolved into tears on Mr. Bennet's shoulder.

"Come on sweetheart. We're going back home." He told her, realizing she was going to hate him even more for what he had to do.

He led her to the car and started it up, looking over at her once. He sighed and leaned back in the seat. Then his cell rang.

"Hello?" He spoke into the receiver.

"_Bennet, are you on your way?"_ Thompson's voice asked.

"Yeah. I just picked her up. She had to run though; they really wanted to run tests."

"_Then get here fast, I'm dispatching the clean up team and the Haitian is going to have a massive job on his hands. Bring her to the extra holding cell." _Thompson told him. Then the line cut off.

Mr. Bennet closed the cell and gripped the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. He looked over to Claire and sighed. She looked back at him with a confused look, but she knew that what he was thinking wasn't good.

When they finally pulled into the lot of Primatech, Claire hopped out of the car and looked around. She was eager to see her mom, Lyle, and Zach.

"Where's mom, Lyle and Zach?" Claire asked with a slight grin at being able to see her mother and brother alright.

"Well… there's somewhere else you need to go." Mr. Bennet sighed. "Follow me."

Mr. Bennet led her down the stairs and down the hall. He used his key card to open a large metal door. He pulled it open and inside was a small concrete block with a blanket on it, there was also a toilet and a sink. A window was placed on the back wall with bars holding the current resident inside. Claire stared at him with a look of betrayal.

"Just hang out in here for a while." Bennet told her and he kissed the top of her head.

"Do I even get to see mom or Lyle?" Claire asked.

"Later." Bennet said flatly. And he shut the door.

Bennet turned the corner and collapsed against the hard concrete wall of the hallway. He was seriously regretting everything he'd done so far in his life. Why had he even taken Claire? It was an order. He was ordered not to get attached. He knew he shouldn't have gotten attached and now he needed to get detached and fast. But how the hell could he go about doing that? To start off, he needed to focus on his job. He was comfortable with morally grey and he needed to remember that.


	24. The Beginning, Part 2

_**Ok Guys, this is it. The finale! Thanks for the reviews!**_

**Sylar**

**Cell, Primatech Paper**

Sylar paced his cell, waiting for contact with someone so he could rip their throat out. He banged on the glass to see how stable it was, and then he turned to a small water drain and looked down it, wishing he'd killed someone who could shrink. Then again, those powers wouldn't even work in there anyway. Seconds later he heard the door open and a man walked in with two larger men.

"Hello Mr. Gray, my name is Henry Marshall." The man in the front told him. He motioned to the two other men.

Sylar turned to the men with an evil glint in his eye. The men approached him with their hands up, ready to grab him.

---

"She in cell 4?" Thompson asked Mr. Bennet when he finally showed up to the front of the building.

"Yes. I'd prefer you didn't say 'cell'. It's more of a room where she'll stay until she's…"

"Save it Bennet. I'm heading over to the blast site with a team to begin clean-up efforts. You and that Haitian need to get ready for some serious memory draining. And while I'm gone, do not go near Claire."

Mr. Bennet looked at Thompson like he wanted to claw his eyes out on the spot. "Yes sir." He growled.

With that, Thompson turned to the door and walked out with three other men following him. The men gave Bennet a slight smirk as they passed him. Mr. Bennet walked down the hall in the opposite direction, his head swarming with a mix of hatred and regret.

---

**Claire Bennet**

**Cell 4, Primatech Paper**

How could her dad do this to her? After all the things he's done so far, this outdid them all… accept the memory drainage of her mother. Was it all a plan? Of course it was. Claire must have never meant anything to her father. From the day she learned that she was adopted she knew that she was never really apart of the family. Was she just a job? A job given to her father by this freak company.

Claire stood up and looked over to the window. She saw a grey haired man climbing into the front of a Primatech Paper van. The other vans were loading up too. Claire knew they were probably heading over to the blast site. She had just heard several men chatting about it. She walked over to the door and tried to open it, of course it didn't budge. What was she, some kind of prisoner?

Claire looked through the small window on the door and saw no one out there. There was nothing but the blank, white wall. She gave up trying to figure out anything and sat down on the concrete block. Suddenly there was a smash from outside, making her jump and almost fall.

Outside the door, the card key pad blinked green and read "Access Granted." Sylar grinned as the door unlocked. He grabbed the card key from the slot; it had a picture of a man named Henry Marshall. He put it in the pocket of his white, Primatech inmate pants. He grabbed the door handle and pushed it open.

"Hello." Sylar grinned in a deep voice.

"_You_." Claire growled, getting off the block.

"It's nice to finally have some alone time with you." Sylar told her with the same grin on his face. He raised his hand towards her forehead.

"The powers won't work here." Claire bluffed when no cut came across her head.

Sylar tried again, and then he cursed. Claire nodded, her bluff was right. She stood her ground, feeling very powerful over him now. Then one thing came to mind. Her powers didn't work either.

"Your powers won't work either." Sylar reminded her. "Which means, you can get hurt…"

"You can't get me." Claire replied, taking a deep breath.

"Oh yes I can. You can't escape… you're locked in."

"So are you."

"Or am I?" Sylar pulled the key from his pocket and flashed the familiar Sylar smirk.

He lunged at Claire, his hands aiming for her neck. Sylar smashed her against the wall, squeezing her neck. She grabbed onto his hands to try to pry them off. The air in her lungs was being cut off and she had no ability to heal it. She tried to get him off but couldn't succeed. Then she kicked him in the stomach, easier solution, she wished she'd thought of that before.

Stumbling to the side, Sylar ran for her again. Claire jumped to the side; he hit the sink, forcing it from the wall. Water began pouring from the loose pipe. Sylar grabbed that and yanked it out. He took aim and hit Claire over the head with it. She fell backwards and into the water. Sylar stood over her and aimed with the pipe again. She rolled over to avoid the blow.

Claire struggled to her feet and dashed for the door. She pushed with all her might on the large metal door but it wouldn't budge. She saw the card key slot and growled. Sylar came from behind her and hit her again, this time, sending her to the ground, knocked out.

Walking down the hall, The Haitian heard several bangs from Cell 4. He didn't have a key so he knew he would need backup if there was a problem. If he remembered correctly, Claire was the occupant of that cell. The Haitian rounded the corner and counted down to cell four. He looked through the small window on the door at the scene inside. He turned and ran to get Mr. Bennet, not even taking a second glance.

Sylar's head jerked to the window in the door. _Dammit. They've figured it out. _Sylar thought, he looked to Claire and grinned.

"We're going." He told her, sudden change of plans…

"What?" Claire asked finally regaining consciousness.

Sylar pulled her up by her neck and held her around the neck. He pulled the key card out and opened the door. They ventured into the hallway, making sure it was empty. Sylar went slowly down the hall and he looked around the corner. No one was down there since most went with Thompson.

"Where the hell are we going?" Claire spat, trying to pull her head out of his grip. She wasn't fazed by him taking her now. She knew she'd escape eventually.

The first time Zach left that room since the explosion, he wasn't expecting such a surprise. When he exited the bathroom, still drying his hands, he was not sure what he heard… it sounded like two pairs of feet on the concrete floor… but one pair was being half-dragged. Zach rounded the corner and spotted something he least expected to see. Sylar didn't see him, but Claire did.

"Zach." She mouthed so Sylar couldn't see.

"Hold on." He mouthed back with a slight grin at seeing her.

Zach's eyes grew wide and he pressed his back firmly against the wall. Sylar dragged Claire across the hall and towards a door at the end. Without thinking twice, Zach followed at a slower pace. Sylar opened the door and walked out into the moonlight, the glow of the room spreading onto the dark ground. He turned around to see if anyone was there. The hall was empty. So, he pulled Claire out the door.

Zach jumped out from the side hall and caught the door. He slid out and looked around. Sylar let Claire out of the head lock and pushed her towards the woods.

"I've been waiting for a while to do this." Sylar snarled. He stood over Claire.

"I'm sure you have." She replied without blinking. His glare was piercing.

"Not afraid now are you Claire? Much different from the first time." Sylar breathed, he had no clue why he hadn't killed her yet.

"I've changed since then." Claire replied, she noticed Zach out of the corner of her eye. "I have a question for you…?" She trailed off.

"Sylar." He answered, he loved saying that name.

"Ok, Sylar, why do you do this? Why are you so power hungry?"

Sylar just looked at her, then he opened his mouth to answer but before he could, the darkness was lit up by fire. Sylar's head jerked back towards where the new light came from. The fire hit him in the shoulder which sent him back into a tree. He growled in pain and lunged for Zach.

"Two for the price of one." Sylar barked, pinning Zach to the hard ground.

---

Mr. Bennet practically raced to the door of Cell 4. He slid his key through the slot nearly breaking it in half. The Haitian dashed along the hall behind him. Mr. Bennet thrust the door open and looked around. There were several drops of blood on the floor and a large puddle of water from when the sink was torn out. The only thing missing was Claire. Mr. Bennet looked back at the Haitian.

"Sylar must have taken her." The Haitian breathed, as if Mr. Bennet didn't already ask.

"I've got to save her." He growled.

"Why? You're going to sell her out to Thompson after anyway." The Haitian told him with a look of disgust.

"I've got to do my job." Mr. Bennet snarled. "And right now, that's recovering her."

"I thought you were a better man Bennet." The Haitian said shaking his head. With that, he walked at a fast pace towards the back door to look for Claire. Mr. Bennet clenched his teeth and raced off in the opposite direction.

The Haitian pulled out a long barreled gun and checked its contents. Once he decided it was in working order, he sped up his pace and looked at the floor. Drops of blood lead to a door and then down a dark hall. He followed them to the back door and into the back parking lot. There he saw several things. Claire was thrown face first from a cloud of fire and Sylar fell back and hit a tree.

The Haitian took aim and shot at Sylar, the oddly shaped bullets soared through the air and attached themselves into Sylar's neck. Sylar groaned and dropped Zach. He stumbled backwards and hit a tree. He looked over at The Haitian, and then he took off. Sylar vanished into the night. The Haitian raced over to Claire and Zach. He looked back towards the building where Mr. Bennet came from.

"Let's go." He hissed and stowed the gun in his jacket. The Haitian grabbed a hold of each of their arms. "Hurry."

"HEY! Stop." Mr. Bennet ordered. The Haitian didn't stop, Claire did though.

Zach stopped next, causing the Haitian to swerve around and splatter mud all over Zach's shoes. "Claire, what are you doing?"

"I've got something to ask my father before we leave." She told him, she turned around to face her father. Tears filled her eyes as she began to speak. "Dad, was I nothing to you but an experiment?"

"Claire, you know that's not true." Mr. Bennet replied as he stopped and approached her. She just stepped back. "I received you as a job, but I fell in love with you, Claire."

"Then why did you hand me over to this freak company?" Claire shot, basically ignoring the last part.

"I had to, my boss, Thompson… we agreed to it when I first got you… but I'm trying to fix it, I'm not handing you over… I'm sorry."

"It's too late for that, Dad." Claire sobbed, "You can't just say you're sorry and think its all better. Sylar could have killed me when I was locked in that room."

"I know that, sweetheart." Mr. Bennet put his hands on Claire's shoulders. "I'm sorry. Right now, I need to focus on getting you safe."

Claire shook her head and her father wiped away her tears. He pulled away from him and turned her back. Mr. Bennet sighed knowing he had so much to fix in so little time. For now he needed to focus on one thing. He looked over at the Haitian.

"I need you to take all my memories of Claire… all of them." He told the Haitian, "I can't have any memories of her existence. Nothing. Then you need to take them from Lyle and Sandra."

"But, Bennet… that's crazy. Thompson will know." The Haitian insisted. He turned away from Mr. Bennet.

"Just do it." Mr. Bennet said flatly. "Take Claire and Zach… take them far away, somewhere no one will ever guess. Things are going to change for Claire, people know about her ability. They'll want her… Thompson will want her. I need you to make sure they never get her."

"Of course." The Haitian agreed, seeing the logic in the plan.

"Go to my wife and son, take them now."

"Wait, can't I say goodbye?" Claire asked, new tears forming.

"No, it's too dangerous; you cannot be on any security tapes." Mr. Bennet told her, "Stay here."

The Haitian ran off towards the building. Mr. Bennet turned to the two. He didn't know where to start; things would never be the same for anyone. He knew Thompson and this company couldn't clean up this mess. He knew Claire would be wanted… all of the special ones would be wanted. People knew of Claire and the scientists would figure out that it wasn't a bomb that went off.

"Zachary, you need to go with them, from what I've learned, you're special too. What can you do?"

"I… I have this fire thing… so far it's only worked under pressure." Zach replied with worry in his voice.

"It's only a matter of time before the company finds you too. You're going into hiding; anyone will think you were killed in the explosion." Mr. Bennet replied fast, noticing that they only had so much time until Thompson returned.

"Even my parents?" Zach questioned, eyes filled with fear and sadness.

"Yes." Mr. Bennet nodded.

"Why do you have to do this?" Claire sobbed, "Why did this happen?"

"Claire, I don't have time to explain. Listen to me; there are people out there, much like Thompson that will want you because of your abilities. They will hurt you, I am doing this to keep you safe."

"Will I ever see you guys again?" She asked him, looking down.

"I don't know." He told her truthfully.

"I love you Dad." Claire said quietly, she walked over to him and hugged him, seeing the Haitian coming over his shoulder. She closed her eyes and tears poured from them. She pulled away from him and walked over to Zach.

"Guys, head to the car, it's down the path some." The Haitian told Zach and Claire, "If he sees you he'll remember."

Claire nodded and turned around; she bowed her head and followed Zach's crunching footsteps down a clearing in the thick wood. They approached the car and opened the back doors. Zach climbed inside first and then Claire. Her mind was buzzing with thoughts of what the future would be like. People all over now knew that she was special, Peter was gone… her family was gone; all she had left was Zach.

"It's going to be fine." Zach told her, feeling her vibes.

"I'm never gonna see my mom or dad again. I'm not gonna see Lyle… Mr. Muggles… school…" She sobbed, forgetting that he too, would never see his family again either.

"I won't either." He reminded her, "My parents think I was killed in the explosion now."

"I'm sorry." Claire muttered to Zach, in response. His comment made her realize this was her fault.

"It's not your fault." He shook his head, "It's just… luck."

"It is my fault Zach."

"Look, I'm not going into this conversation, it is what it is and we'll have to deal with it."

"I agree, maybe we were given these for a reason… I mean, this freak show has practically ruined our lives, they have to be for something." Claire wondered, she looked over at Zach who nodded. Then he noticed the Haitian returning their way, he was coming at quite the speed.

He opened the door and jumped in, turning the car on before he even closed the door. Zach hurried to click his seatbelt into place; the darkness didn't help with that at all. Headlight beams jumped from tree to tree and finally rested on Claire's eyes, blinding her. The Haitian backed the car out of its spot between trees, almost hitting a tree in the process, and then a voice filled the chilly air.

"HEY!" Thompson roared, his form blocking the headlights.

Claire blinked in the blinding light until it was nothing but a spec in the distance. She finally turned around. "Where are we going?" She asked.

"I don't even know yet, but we need to find somewhere and fast, Primatech is good at what they do." The Haitian replied as he checked the mirrors.

Claire looked into the darkness out her window, thinking about how the events of the day could have been changed, Peter's death, the explosion, her family's memory wipe. She finally settled on one thing: Her destiny is what it is; hopefully it will be worth all of this.

---

**Blast Site**

**Odessa, Texas**

"Stevens has been captured." A tall figure told another as they worked on turning on florescent lights at the blast site. His yellow suit glowed in the darkness.

"That's good. We don't need someone like him on the team, trying to protect that freak girl. Any news on her?" His partner asked.

"Nah, she's long gone, who knows what else she can do. It's pretty freaky, this explosion, and no traces of any bombs, you think it was her?"

"Yeah right, what? Do you believe in all of this supernatural bull?"

"Honestly, I have no clue, I mean, this girl happened to survive a massive explosion that seems to have just happened, just like that." He snapped his fingers to show his point.

"Got it." The partner grinned as the light buzzed on.

"What the hell is that?" The tall guy breathed, he pointed at a charred looking thing as it moved around on the pavement.

Both of the men stepped forward towards it. Charred bits of body parts were lacing themselves together.

"Do you believe in the supernatural bull now?"

_**Not-Really-but-Technically The End**_

_**The sequel will be much better, I've got some plans, and some intertwine with what's happening in the actual show. A lot more will happen with Sylar and some other characters. Lets just say, no one will be safe from anyone. **_

_**Any questions feel free to ask, to be cleared up on stuff. Production of the sequel has already began. **_


End file.
